A former lieutenant in the paratroops is openly recruiting other combat veterans to form a private commando army to attack Palestinian terrorists in their bases across the borders. He has placed ads in the press for men who will fight the terrorists “not in uniforms and not in the name of the State of Israel.”
The recruiter, identified only as Eitan, is reportedly employed in an industrial enterprise in the Negev. His ads are addressed to men on active duty in the armed forces as well as to former soldiers. He has named his volunteer organization the “Yuli Unit.” Its address is a post office box. Men presently on active duty are urged to write to the military authorities requesting paid leave for the duration of their service with the volunteer outfit.
Eitan served during the Yom Kippur War under the command of Gen. Ariel Sharon whose division broke through Egyptian lines to establish the first Israeli bridgehead on the west bank of the Suez Canal. He says he wants Sharon, who has retired from the army and presently serves in the Knesset, to head his unit. Sharon’s attitude is not known. Eitan advocates unorthodox methods to fight terrorists. He believes the only way to destroy them is to penetrate their bases and wipe them out.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
