The Torah scroll that survived the battles in Gaza

Battalion 7421's Torah scroll departed the Gaza Strip together with the battalion after it accompanied it through its battles.

"Have a good look, we are writing our history, what's boarding my bus? A Torah scroll," said Luba, the driver of the that which transported the troops.

One of the battalion's soldiers expounded on the scroll's history: "This Torah scroll was with us in Khan Yunis and moved a few synagogues, every time we moved to another location, the scroll moved with us. On Thursday, the scroll went in again with the platoon when we established a synagogue and now it's going out with us as we have completed our activity. We started this war on (the holiday of) Simchat Torah and now we are completing it during the time of the acceptance of the Torah. That is our tradition, we are always with the Torah, it always follows us and will be with us forever, Am Israel Chai!"

An additional soldier told Arutz Sheva-Israel National News about the Torah scroll's journey: "We fought with the Paratroopers Brigade Battle Team, and at every location that we moved to we established a synagogue and called it by a name. We wrote down the service times and the forces in the area came. Shabbats were the pinnacle. During the week there were services between the operations. Our goal was to lift the troops' spirits and plant buds of Jewish settlement at those locations."

The soldier added: "The first synagogue which was established in Shuja'iyya was called "Ka Ribon" after the song written by Rabbi Israel Najara, the Rabbi of Gaza. Later we moved to other locations and so seven synagogues were established which expressed the troops' fighting spirit."