2023 Israeli female tank crew fight

2023 Israeli female tank crew fight
	Part of the Battle of Sufa, ; the 2023 Hamas-led attack on Israel, ; and 2023 Israel–Hamas war
	; Merkava Mk 4 Barak
Date	7 October 2023
Location	Holit and Sufa, Israel
Belligerents
Hamas Al-Qassam Brigades; ; ; [citation needed]	• Israel; Caracal Battalion 4 Merkava tanks Tankers: Hagar, Hila, Tal, Michal, Karni, Ophir and Tamar; ; 1 Namer APC; ; ;

On 7 October 2023, seven female Israeli tank crew members from the Caracal battalion fought against Gazans who they alleged were Hamas^[1] continuously for 17 hours. According to the IDF, the young women were the first ever female tank crews in the West to engage in active combat.^[1] According to Israel, they killed 50 militants.^[1]

The incident was cited by The New York Times as an important milestone in the integration of women in the army, symbolizing a significant shift after a prolonged struggle for acceptance.^[2]

Israel has promoted its female tank crews as part of its public relations war within the conflict.^[3]

^ ^a ^b ^c "All-woman Israeli Tank Crews Killed 50 Terrorists Over 17 Hours of Combat on October 7". Haaretz. Archived from the original on 2023-11-26. Retrieved 2023-11-28.
^ Kershner, Isabel (2024-01-19). "Israeli Women Fight on Front Line in Gaza, a First". New York Times. Retrieved 2024-01-27.
^ Cite error: The named reference afr was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

[haaretz-1] "All-woman Israeli Tank Crews Killed 50 Terrorists Over 17 Hours of Combat on October 7". Haaretz. Archived from the original on 2023-11-26. Retrieved 2023-11-28.

[NYTimes-2] Kershner, Isabel (2024-01-19). "Israeli Women Fight on Front Line in Gaza, a First". New York Times. Retrieved 2024-01-27.

[afr-3] Cite error: The named reference afr was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

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