They eliminated 22 terrorists and prevented their outpost from being overrun. This is Captain Yuval Duek, a company commander in an IDF reconnaissance battalion. On the morning of October 7, 2023, she was at home in one of the kibbutzim near the Gaza border when she quickly realized that a massive terrorist attack was underway. Still wearing her pajamas and armed only with a pistol, she drove toward Kibbutz Sufa. According to published accounts, she encountered Hamas terrorists riding motorcycles on the way. Steering with her knees, she opened fire, reportedly killing two attackers before taking up a defensive position and attempting to contact her brigade commander. She soon learned that the commander of the Nahal Brigade had been killed earlier that morning. Captain Duek then linked up with Major Ron Fabian. Together, they established an improvised command post in a nearby moshav and assumed responsibility for coordinating the battalion’s response. Using only a small map and radio communications, they directed arriving IDF units, coordinated attack helicopter strikes against identified terrorist positions, and organized the airlift of reinforcements to the most critical sectors near the Gaza border. Amid widespread chaos, casualties, and ongoing fighting, the two officers maintained command and control, preventing Hamas terrorists from overrunning the outpost and the adjacent kibbutz. According to these accounts, 22 Hamas terrorists were killed during the battle, forcing the attackers to retreat. Captain Duek and Major Fabian later continued fighting as part of the IDF’s operations inside the Gaza Strip.❤️🙏