‘Valley of Tears’ 1973 Battle Site
‘Valley of Tears’ is the name given to a battle site in the northern Golan Heights. Here, at the outbreak of the 1973 Yom Kippur War, Israeli tank forces successfully held against a massive Syrian assault for four continuous days.
The ‘Valley of Tears’ Battle
The Yom Kippur War broke out towards the end of the holiday’s fast, on October 6, 1973, at 2:00 p.m. The Israeli intelligence failed to anticipate the assault, and so the forces were depleted, also because of the holiday. Some of the soldiers even fasted. The 3-mile ‘Valley of Tears,’ in the northern part of the Golan, is a relatively flat terrain, a preferred landscape for the armored attack. Being so, the Syrians planned to make it one of the main penetration routes.
The assault was accompanied by heavy artillery, but despite the surprise, the Israeli ground forces managed to hold out in the first hours. Even at night, despite the lack of night vision devices, Israeli forces managed to stop the progress of the Syrians. The Syrians condensed the armored troops on the second day and intensified the attack. Israeli reserve forces that arrived were sent to the southern sector of the Golan Heights, where the situation was worse.
Israeli Resilience and Recovery
The Israeli-depleted troops at the northern frontier kept fighting to prevent the Syrian army from advancing. During the second night, the Syrians deployed anti-tank missiles. They hit some of the Israeli vessels but did not bring them to surrender or retreat. On the third day, the Syrians made another effort to break through the Israeli lines. The Israeli forces were exhausted, some running out of ammunition. The assault began in the morning, accompanied again by heavy artillery shelling. In the heat of battle, the battalion commander ordered a retreat from the frontline positions.
Still, later, shouting the command on the radio, he led the forces to re-occupy the positions and continue the fight. Shortly after, the Syrians retreat. On the fourth day, all the Syrian forces retreated to the “Purple Line,” leaving behind about 700 burnt tanks and armored vehicles.
The ‘Valley of Tears’ becomes a popular TV series.
After ten years of production, 2020 Israeli TV Channel 1 released a nerve-racking 10-chapter series following events and battles in the Yom Kippur War. Its final episodes are devoted to the fight at the ‘Valley of Tears.’ Purchased by HBO Max, ‘Valley of Tears’ is its English name.
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Touring ‘Valley of Tears’ Battle Site
The battle occurred in the plains east of Kibbutz El-Rom and Road 98. On a hill 1 mile east of the kibbutz, a memorial plaque presents the names of the Israeli fallen soldiers in the battle. Next to it is a British-made Israeli tank (“shot-Kal”) facing a Russian-made Syrian T-55. The fight’s dramatic 20-minute video presentation is available at Kibbutz El-Rom (OZ 77 movie). It echoes the courage and heroism of the unit to stop the Syrian attack successfully.
A tour of the Valley of Tears battle site can be combined with a multi-day tour in Israel, including exploring the Golan Heights.
