Former deputy chief of Police, Shachar Ayalon, gives a glimpse of the Yamam [counter terrorism unit] that was established many decades ago, after the failures of other units in dealing with releasing hostages.
"The IDF unit will soon be 50 years old. I joined it 45 years ago. At the beginning of our journey we weren’t so well known, nor were we that loved by the police and the army. The trust in our unit was built little by little and with a great leap in faith for our abilities in 1988, when the Mothers' Bus was rescued by the Yamam fighters near the Aro’er junction.
The Yamam unit was established after the failure of rescuing the hostages in Ma'alot and the murder of 11 Israeli athletes at the Munich Olympics. The difference between the Yamam unit and a military unit is that the unit knows how to operate while the combatants are firing away from each other to avoid double-sided fire while hitting the terrorists. On the other hand, the army works more on the firing line," explained Ayalon in an interview with Benny Teitelbaum at Kan Moreshet.
On the operation to free hostages Fernando Marman and Louis Har from Hamas captivity, he says, "I imagine that the execution of the operation was as professional as could be expected from their point of view. Those who were in the command rooms describe the operation as a perfect execution and I am happy about that. If the operation is not perfect – there is an immediate danger to the hostages. One of the unique things about this incident, that I was not familiar with, is that the fighters protected the hostages with their bodies, and they probably practiced this. This did not exist during my time."
According to Ayalon, there are significant and very strict preparations for such an operation. "There is a practice called the “model practice,” where you practice situations based on drawings and prepare entry to a structure that is very similar to the one you have to overpower. You have to decide what measures you take with you. There is no doubt that this is an operation in which you have to prepare the costumes, the in and out movements, and these preparations are complicated."
On the murderous surprise attack by Hamas on Israel, Ayalon says, "We received a fatal blow that will follow us for decades to come. There are people who have engraved the date October 7th on their bodies, and they will not give up and will not show signs of contempt. We will all be stronger if we know how to grow from this event. In a hundred years, in general, and in particular since 1948, we have been attacked and injured non-stop. We strive for peace, but this is not the case with those around us. We are doing something which in my opinion is the most important, we are building the State of Israel, prospering in every possible field. You can compare the state today to the young state that existed 40-50 years ago? This is a strong country that is developing and that is our strength."
