The elite Golani reconnaissance unit relives the Ayta ash-Shab operation: "Grenades exploding, shouting, you realize something is hiding in that house"
What began as a routine mission ended with a crucial intelligence tip that led to a fierce firefight inside a Hezbollah compound in the Lebanese village of Ayta ash-Shab. One year later, the Golani Reconnaissance Unit soldiers recount the dramatic moments step by step as part of the IDF Heritage Compass project.
Maj. M., then the unit’s deputy commander, recalls: “The goal was to seize four Hezbollah Radwan Force buildings and destroy a tunnel route.” But during the operation, the troops received intelligence that a senior Radwan commander—head of the Ayta ash-Shab sector—was nearby.
As they moved in, soldiers discovered tunnel entrances. “We heard on the radio that four terrorists, including the senior commander, were hiding there,” says Lt. Col. D., the unit commander. After a siege and overnight interrogation, they gained valuable information pinpointing two buildings connected by a tunnel.