Mefalsim

When Moshe Kaplan, Kibbutz Mefalsim’s security chief, understood that terrorists had infiltrated Kibbutz Mefalsim, he urgently contact his civil defense team via voice text.  “Terrorists in the kibbutz! Terrorists in the kibbutz!” he yelled…begging his men to hurry. Dozens of Hamas terrorists had arrived in vans and on motorcycles and were attacking the Kibbutz.  Moshe Kaplan started to shoot at the assailants. When Yarden Reskin, a 38-year-old landscape architect and a member of the kibbutz’s civil defense force, heard gunshots, he grabbed his weapon and moved towards the kibbutz gate. “I saw three guys in black over the fence, on the main road,” he said.  “When they turned around, I saw that they had Kalashnikovs.  I fired a volley. One was hit, the other two ran away. Then I saw between 12-15 terrorists.”

At that time, the rest of the members of the civil defense team arrived – eight civilians and two soldiers who were on leave from the army.  They wore helmets, protective vests and carried M16 rifles.  Outnumbered and fighting alone or in pairs, the men mounted a life-or-death stand, communicating via walkie-talkie and WhatsApp texts to track the militants and send each other help.

Moshe Kaplan directed the kibbutz residents to stay inside their homes.  Terrified families hid in their safe rooms where they could hear intense gunfire right outside. A dozen members of the kibbutz volunteer defense force fought 25 – 30 Hamas terrorists for hours, from early morning until the afternoon.  They successfully held them off until IDF reinforcements arrived and cleared away additional Hamas gunmen approaching the kibbutz.  Though several members of the kibbutz were injured, no one was kidnapped and there were no fatalities inside the community, although at least one civilian was killed outside the kibbutz gates.

Documents and maps found on the bodies of the terrorists revealed the scope of the preparations to attack Kibbutz Mefalsim and the high quality intelligence they had.  The documents included detailed information about the kibbutz’s guards and security.  The materials said that one group of militants would break through the community’s fence, while others were ordered to “capture soldiers and civilians and to keep hostages” for negotiation.  The terrorists were well prepared for the fighting, and planned ahead of time to cause maximum carnage. Yarden Reskin said he was shocked by the level of detail. “They knew everything.  They knew where the gates are, they knew where the generators are, they knew where the armory is, they knew basically how many of us on are the civil defense team… they had very, very good intel.”
Nir Sadan, 25, tried to calm his mother after she received word of her brother’s death while they were hiding in their safe room in the kibbutz Mefalsim. “I was afraid the terrorists would hear her crying inside and storm in.”