Battle of Wadi Saluki

Battle of Wadi Saluki
Part of 2006 Lebanon War
Date August 11–13, 2006
Location Southern Lebanon
Result Indecisive; Division 162 advance stalls, subsequent Israeli withdrawal according to UNSC resolution 1701[1]
Belligerents
Israel Hezbollah
Commanders and leaders
Colonel Moti Kidor(WIA)[2] Unknown
Strength
Infantry
24 Merkava tanks from Division 162[2]		 100+ infantry (Israeli claim)
Kornet missiles[2]
Casualties and losses
12 killed[2] ~80 Killed (Israeli claim)[2]

The Battle of Wadi Saluki took place as part of the Litani offensive during 2006 Lebanon War.

Battle

Israeli infantry and two companies of Merkava tanks were sent uphill to attack a Hezbollah position. The Israeli troops had no artillery or helicopter support. Hezbollah fired anti-tank missiles on the Israeli tanks. Eleven tanks were hit by missile fire, and there were casualties inside the tanks. Requests for artillery support were denied because of the large concentration of infantry. Israeli troops managed to fight their way to the top of the hill. After they reached their objective, the Israeli troops withdrew, since Israel approved a UN ceasefire resolution shortly after the battle. Israeli forces claimed to have killed 80 Hezbollah fighters, while 12 Israeli soldiers were killed in four tanks. One Merkava Mark III tank and one Merkava Mark IV tank were destroyed, their crews taking heavy casualties, around 19:20 and 20:45 August 12th respectively. Another two Merkava Mark IV tanks had one and three casualties respectively, also on August 12th.

References

  1. ^ "We were caught unprepared: the 2006 Hezbollah-Israeli War". U.S. Army Combined Arms Center, Combat Studies Institute Press. http://catalogue.nla.gov.au/Record/4509551. Retrieved 2011-12-21.  pg54
  2. ^ a b c d e Katz, Yaakov (2006-08-30). "Wadi Saluki battle - microcosm of war's mistakes". The Jerusalem Post. http://jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1154525969154&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull. Retrieved 2007-12-14. 

External links