Israeli commander says her unit of mostly women killed 100 Hamas militants

• Female soldiers with the Israeli Defence Forces fought back Hamas militants on October 7.
• The soldiers killed around 100 Hamas militants, their commander told the Jerusalem Post.

An Israeli commander told the Jerusalem Post that her battalion, made up of mostly female soldiers, killed around 100 Hamas militants during the terrorist attacks on October 7.

Israeli Caracal commander Lt.-Col. Or Ben-Yehuda told the outlet the women "emerged as heroes" for their actions near the Gaza Strip.

On the morning of October 7, Ben-Yehuda said she received a message reporting an infiltration of heavily armed militants near the kibbutzim of Sufa and Nirim.

Not yet knowing the extent of the attacks, she told her soldiers: "Stay alert. We might cross paths. We are a strong squad," according to the report.

Upon arrival in the Sufa kibbutz, Ben-Yehuda said she saw how big the Hamas infiltration was.

"We are going out to eliminate terrorists. Infiltration into Israel is happening, and it's spreading," she told her battalion, according to the Jerusalem Post.

Combat between the battalion and the militants lasted nearly four hours, she said. It took the Caracal battalion about 14 hours to secure the base alongside other units, the outlet said.

The Caracal Battalion, which is tasked with protecting Israel's border, is one of three mixed-gender combat units.

It was established in 2004 for the purpose of incorporating women in service into combat units. Two-thirds of its members are women, according to the Israel Defense Forces (IDF).

None of her squad members were killed, though Ben-Yehuda herself came very close to being shot at point-blank range, she told the outlet.

"Their training and performance on the battlefield have erased any doubts. They fought bravely, saved lives, and emerged as heroes," she told the Jerusalem Post.

"There are no more doubts about female combat soldiers, who have triumphed in every encounter with terrorists," she said,

Ben-Yehuda added that her battalion is now "preparing for any potential ground maneuvers to ensure the safety of the southern Gaza border area and the Egyptian border."

Israel is one of only a few countries where military service is compulsory for women. In the IDF, they serve a variety of roles, including in elite search and rescue and combat engineering units.

During its surprise terrorist attacks, Hamas militants took more than 200 people hostage and left more than 1,300 Israelis and foreign nationals dead, according to Israeli officials.

Israel has since responded with relentless airstrikes on Gaza, which Palestinian officials say have killed at least 5,000 people at the time of writing.