Yamam (), also known as National Counter-Terrorism Unit, is Israel's national

counter-terrorism Counterterrorism (alternatively spelled: counter-terrorism), also known as anti-terrorism, relates to the practices, military tactics, techniques, and strategies that governments, law enforcement, businesses, and intelligence agencies use to co ...

unit, one of four special units of the

Israel Border Police The Israel Border Police () is the gendarmerie and border security branch of the Israel National Police. It is also commonly known by its Hebrew abbreviation Magav (), meaning border guard; its members are colloquially known as ''magavnikim ...

. The Yamam is capable of both hostage-rescue operations and offensive take-over raids against terrorist targets in civilian areas. Besides military and counter-terrorism duties, it also performs tactical unit duties and undercover police work.

History

The Yamam was established in late 1974 after the

Ma'alot massacre The Ma'alot massacreSources describing the event as a "massacre": * * * * * * * was a Palestinian Terrorism, Palestinian terrorist attack that occurred on 14–15 May 1974 and involved the hostage-taking of 115 Israelis, chiefly school ...

, where a failed rescue operation by the

Sayeret Matkal Sayeret Matkal () (formerly Unit 269 or Unit 262) (English: General Staff Reconnaissance Unit), is the special reconnaissance unit (''sayeret'') of Israel's General Staff (''matkal''). It is considered one of the premier special forces units of ...

commando unit of the

Israel Defense Forces The Israel Defense Forces (IDF; , ), alternatively referred to by the Hebrew-language acronym (), is the national military of the State of Israel. It consists of three service branches: the Israeli Ground Forces, the Israeli Air Force, and ...

resulted in the murder of 21 schoolchildren before the hostage takers were killed.

Operational record after the Second Intifada

On May 23, 2006, a Yamam force, using intelligence provided by the Shin-Bet, arrested Ibrahim Hamed after an

IDF Caterpillar D9 The IDF Caterpillar D9 — nicknamed ''Doobi'' (, for teddy bear) — is a Caterpillar D9 armored bulldozer used by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF). It is supplied by Caterpillar Inc. and modified by the Israel Defense Forces, Israeli Milita ...

armored bulldozer started ramming the house in which he was hiding. On September 23, 2014, a Yamam force, together with

Combat Engineering Corps

bulldozers A bulldozer or dozer (also called a crawler) is a large tractor equipped with a metal blade at the front for pushing material (soil, sand, snow, rubble, or rock) during construction work. It travels most commonly on continuous tracks, though s ...

, killed the two

Hamas The Islamic Resistance Movement, abbreviated Hamas (the Arabic acronym from ), is a Palestinian nationalist Sunni Islam, Sunni Islamism, Islamist political organisation with a military wing, the Qassam Brigades. It has Gaza Strip under Hama ...

members accused of killing three Israeli teens in June 2014.

Operational record during Operation Breakwater (2022–2023)

On April 2, 2022, YAMAM operators killed 3

Palestinian Islamic Jihad The Islamic Jihad Movement in Palestine (, ''Harakat al-Jihād al-Islāmi fi Filastīn''), commonly known simply as Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ), is a Palestinian Islamist paramilitary organization formed in 1981. PIJ formed as an offsh ...

militants, reportedly on their way to an attack. On August 19, 2022, YAMAM operators killed Ibrahim al-Nabulsi, a commander of the Lions' Den militant group. On October 25, 2022, YAMAM led a combined raid (with the

and the

Shin Bet The Israel Security Agency (ISA; , (GSS); ), better known by the Hebrew acronyms, acronyms Shabak (; ; ) or Shin Bet (from the abbreviation of , "Security Service"), is Israel's internal Security agency, security service. Its motto is "''Magen ...

) on what the IDF said was the Lions' Den headquarters and bomb lab in

Nablus Nablus ( ; , ) is a State of Palestine, Palestinian city in the West Bank, located approximately north of Jerusalem, with a population of 156,906. Located between Mount Ebal and Mount Gerizim, it is the capital of the Nablus Governorate and a ...

. On January 26, 2023, YAMAM led a combined raid (with the

and the

) on Jenin refugee camp, which the IDF said was targeted against members of Palestinian Islamic Jihad who were planning an attack. Nine Palestinians were killed in the attack, including an unarmed civilian.

Operational record during the Hamas led-attack on October 7, 2023, and afterwards

On October 7, 2023, YAMAM forces were the first to respond to the

2023 Hamas-led attack on Israel On October 7, 2023, Hamas and several other Palestinians, Palestinian militant groups launched coordinated armed incursions from the Gaza Strip into the Gaza envelope of southern Israel, the first invasion of Israeli territory since the 1948 ...

and the numerous massacres conducted by Palestinians in Israeli communities and towns. YAMAM operators killed in combat 200 armed Hamas gunmen and conducted several hostage rescue operations. YAMAM lost 9 operators and officers who were killed in action. On February 12, 2024, YAMAM rescued two Israeli hostages in

Rafah Rafah ( ) is a city in the southern Gaza Strip, Palestine, and the capital of the Rafah Governorate. It is located south-west of Gaza City. In 2017, Rafah had a population of 171,889. Due to the Gaza war, about 1.4 million people from Gaza C ...

, together with the

and the

Israeli Defense Forces Israeli may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the State of Israel * Israelis, citizens or permanent residents of the State of Israel * Modern Hebrew, a language * ''Israeli'' (newspaper), published from 2006 to 2008 * Guni Israeli (b ...

, in a military covert raid code-named Operation Golden Hand. On June 8, 2024, YAMAM rescued four hostages in the Nuseirat Refugee Camp, together with the

and the

, in Operation Arnon. During the operation, Squad Commander Arnon Zamora, 36, was killed in combat. Noa Argamani, an Israeli citizen kidnapped in the Re'im Music festival massacre, was rescued in the operation. During the operation, according to the IDF, under 100 Palestinians were killed. According to Hamas, 210 were killed.

Selection and training

Yamam recruits veterans of

and

combat units who completed their compulsory service. Applicants must have served in a regular IDF combat unit and completed a commander's course (Rifleman 08), served in an IDF special forces unit, or served in a Border Police Mista'arvim unit. The unit's training course lasts seven months, divided into three months of basic counter-terrorism training, during which recruits go through basic combat training as well as training in hand-to-hand combat, urban combat, and use of specialized weapons, followed by four months of advanced training. The YAMAM trains and operates entry and breaching teams,

rappelling Abseiling ( ; ), also known as rappelling ( ; ), is the controlled descent of a steep slope, such as a rock face, by moving down a rope. When abseiling, the person descending controls their own movement down a static or fixed rope, in cont ...

team,

sniper A sniper is a military or paramilitary marksman who engages targets from positions of concealment or at distances exceeding the target's detection capabilities. Snipers generally have specialized training and are equipped with telescopic si ...

s, K9 operator,

paratroopers A paratrooper or military parachutist is a soldier trained to conduct military operations by parachuting directly into an area of operations, usually as part of a large airborne forces unit. Traditionally paratroopers fight only as light inf ...

, EOD operators and undercover operators. This allows the unit to be independent of other units and respond rapidly to terror attacks and emergency cases.

Honors

The unit received number of honor citations (TZALASH, ציון לשבח) from the Commissioner of the Israeli Police: 2011, 2014, 2016, 2020, and 2022. In 2022 the unit received an honor citation from the

Chief of the General Staff (צל"ש הרמטכ"ל) for their fighting during Operation Breakwater.על פעילותן במבצע "שובר גלים": היחידות והגדודים שיקבלו צל"שים, תעודות הצטיינות והערכה – הרשימה המלאה
IDF website, November 2022 (Hebrew).

References

External links

YAMAM
– official site ( Israeli Police official website) (2014 archive)
"'We Try to Learn Every Terrorist Attack': Inside the Top-Secret Israeli Anti-Terrorism Operation That's Changing the Game"
'' Vanity Fair'', 2018
"Inside the Ya'ma'm: Israel's Top Secret Hostage Rescue and Counterterrorist Unit"
''

Esquire Esquire (, ; abbreviated Esq.) is usually a courtesy title. In the United Kingdom, ''esquire'' historically was a title of respect accorded to men of higher social rank, particularly members of the landed gentry above the rank of gentleman ...

'', 2018
An inside look at Israel's special forces rescue unit fighting terrorists, rescuing hostages: 'Full on Fauda'

Fox News The Fox News Channel (FNC), commonly known as Fox News, is an American Multinational corporation, multinational Conservatism in the United States, conservative List of news television channels, news and political commentary Television stati ...

, 8 September 2024 {{Authority control 1974 establishments in Israel Israeli–Palestinian conflict Police units of Israel Police tactical units Special forces of Israel

History

Operational record after the Second Intifada

Operational record during Operation Breakwater (2022–2023)

Operational record during the Hamas led-attack on October 7, 2023, and afterwards

Selection and training

Honors

See also

References

External links