The Sword Battalion ( he, גדוד חרב, translit=Gdud Herev; ar, كتيبة السيف), formerly Unit 300 and also known as the IDF Minorities Unit, was an

Arabic Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C. E.Watson; Walte ...

-speaking

battalion A battalion is a military unit, typically consisting of 300 to 1,200 soldiers commanded by a lieutenant colonel, and subdivided into a number of companies (usually each commanded by a major or a captain). In some countries, battalions are ...

of the Israel Defense Forces.

History

Unit 300 was formed in the early summer of 1948 by incorporating

Druze The Druze (; ar, دَرْزِيٌّ, ' or ', , ') are an Arabic-speaking esoteric ethnoreligious group from Western Asia who adhere to the Druze faith, an Abrahamic, monotheistic, syncretic, and ethnic religion based on the teachings o ...

defectors from the

Arab Liberation Army The Arab Liberation Army (ALA; ar, جيش الإنقاذ العربي ''Jaysh al-Inqadh al-Arabi''), also translated as Arab Salvation Army, was an army of volunteers from Arab countries led by Fawzi al-Qawuqji. It fought on the Arab side in th ...

and small numbers of Bedouins and

Circassians The Circassians (also referred to as Cherkess or Adyghe; Adyghe and Kabardian: Адыгэхэр, romanized: ''Adıgəxər'') are an indigenous Northwest Caucasian ethnic group and nation native to the historical country-region of Circassia ...

. The battalion was attached to the Oded Brigade and took part in

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

's Operation Hiram in October 1948; it fought in every major Arab–Israeli war since. While ethnic Druze comprised the majority of the its members, there were also recruits drawn from the Bedouin, Circassian,

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words '' Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρ ...

and Arab Muslim communities. The battalion produced several generals for the Israel Defense Forces (IDF). The Sword Battalion had a small elite Sayeret wing. The Druze and Circassian communities are the only ethnic groups in Israel who are subject to mandatory conscription alongside the Jewish majority; however, unlike the conscription system in place for Israeli Jews, which draws both males and females, only males are drafted from the Druze and Circassian minority communities. The conscription of Druze Israelis began shortly after the passing of the State Defense Act of 1949, which called for mandatory military service by all individuals in the country; non-Jews were exempted from this act by the Israeli government. The Druze leadership appealed to Israeli prime minister

David Ben-Gurion David Ben-Gurion ( ; he, דָּוִד בֶּן-גּוּרִיּוֹן ; born David Grün; 16 October 1886 – 1 December 1973) was the primary national founder of the State of Israel and the first prime minister of Israel. Adopting the na ...

in the mid-1950s to cancel the Druze exemption and draft Druze men into the Israeli military on the same basis as Jewish men. Originally, they served in the framework of a special unit. Since the 1980s, Druze soldiers have increasingly joined regular combat units of the IDF, and have attained high ranks and commendations for distinguished service. The service-continuation rate of Druze Israeli males stood at 83 percent in 2009. According to IDF statistics, 369 Druze soldiers have been killed in Israeli combat operations since 1948. There is a long-standing Israeli government policy of encouraging Bedouins to volunteer and offering them various incentives. In some Bedouin communities, a military career is seen as a means of social mobility in Israel. Christian and Muslim Arabs are also accepted as volunteers. In 1987, Unit 300 was officially renamed to the ''Sword Battalion''.Surrounded: Palestinian soldiers in the Israeli military. By Rhoda Ann Kanaaneh. p. 53 In May 2015, the IDF revealed its plan to disband the Sword Battalion, after research revealed the vast majority of its recruits would rather integrate into the rest of the military.

Gallery

File:Bedouin, Minority Units IDF 1949.jpg, A Bedouin serving in one of the minority units of the Israel Defense Forces (13/05/1949) File:Flickr - Government Press Office (GPO) - A druze idf soldier.jpg, A Druze IDF soldier guarding a mobile power station with a ''Mauser Kar. 98k'' rifle (13/5/1949) File:Bedouin IDF1949.jpg, Bedouin-Israeli soldiers at a military parade in

Tel Aviv Tel Aviv-Yafo ( he, תֵּל־אָבִיב-יָפוֹ, translit=Tēl-ʾĀvīv-Yāfō ; ar, تَلّ أَبِيب – يَافَا, translit=Tall ʾAbīb-Yāfā, links=no), often referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the G ...

in 1949 File:Flickr - Israel Defense Forces - IDF Unique Unit 'Herev' Conducts an Exercise in Northern Israel.jpg, IDF Sword Battalion recruits during a military exercise in northern Israel in 2011

History

Gallery

See also

References

Further reading