This post is a continuation of yesterday’s effort to provide you with vital and up-to-date information on those volunteers most able to make a difference here in Israel. I understand everyone’s resources, time and attention is stretched, but this is crucial. Please read and carefully with much prayer, decide how you can help fight the war against terror. Please, if it is only to raise awareness, to spread the word, to pass this blog along.

Unit 11741 is depending on your support in order to fight and win this war. Chaya Hitin is a valiant Woman of Valor here dedicating much time and energy to this particular project….

Indefatigable: adjective. 1. Having or showing a capacity for persistent effort; not tiring or relenting 2. Incapable of being fatigued; not readily exhausted; unremitting go in labor or effort; unyielding; not giving up

Chaya Hitin is a force in motion. She is an American Israeli, originally from New York, here for 17 years. By day Chaya is a payroll accountant at a Jerusalem law firm. She is also a devoted wife and a mother to 5 young children; a modern Israeli lioness; and a social activist in the best way possible. Her dream is to be able to heal the world and fix the brokenness of the world one problem at a time.

It all started with her giving aid to the needy of Rehovot, Israel, specifically single mothers – first directly and then through finding them the resources where the help they would receive would be most effective for them. Chaya channels all her energy and all he “spare time” to special projects. If she sees a pressing need, she’s all over it.

When the Hamas terrorist incursion into Israel shook this land on 7 October of last year, the army was mobilized and reservists were called up to man all fronts immediately. Rockets were raining down by the hundreds each day from Gaza into the south and center of the country. Hizbulla began incessantly firing their missiles into the North. Because of the internal Israeli political and social divisions, it was thought that only 60% of the reservists in Israel would report for duty. By the close of Day Two, there was a 100% turn-out rate. The thousands of reservists and Lone Soldiers flying in from around the globe, willing to fight in the existential war for the State of Israel, left the IDF logistics centers and warehouses unprepared, overwhelmed and drained of material resources.

The soldiers, from their 20s to their late 60s, had dropped everything to defend Israel. Many showed up to their units with nothing more than the clothes on their backs. By Day Three the entire country had sprung into action on war footing. People were collecting hygiene products and basic gear for the soldiers. Chaya Hitin watched as her neighborhood filled with chayalim (soldiers) left for the front at a moment’s notice. She cried as he next-door neighbor, visiting from Sderot, left his now-evacuated 8-months pregnant wife for reserve duty. He had his gun, but was still wearing his flip-flops!!! Chaya’s home became ground zero as a staging and drop off area. Wives would bring socks and underwear, uniforms and boots left behind. Parents were gathering up sleeping bags, boots and old uniforms, and Chaya would find a way to distribute them.

Soldiers themselves would call a Chaya directly asking her if she knew a way to get all the necessary gear they were lacking, even though she was just a small, private citizen without access to meaningful resources. By the second week of the war, her neighbor, Maayan, who was in the bloody battles on Zikim Beach in Gaza with his unit of 100 men, reached out for immediate help. Most were young dads with several children. Their gear was old and was falling apart. Adequate protection from flying bullets and shattering grenades was not provided by the old helmets and vests. She knew she must get involved on a higher level. From a grassroots operation, over the course of the past nine months, together with the support of the incredible Rehovot community, a group of global ambassadors, and specifically Beit Chatam, Chaya was able to pull strings, raise funds in Israel and America, and procure 1.6 million shekels ($432,800) worth of tactical equipment. 1150 light, state of the art, protective and bulletproof helmets were supplied by local, Israeli suppliers and immediately distributed to soldiers in need.

Chaya’s forté lies in being a bridge between worlds, in bringing communities together in a time of disunity. At first the army had said that ‘every soldier has what he needs; that they were just catching up in delivery; that there is no shortage.’ But, in fact, there was a dangerously critical shortage of gear the soldiers needed. There were two aspects to this problem.

The first was a security issue. On 7 October, Hamas terrorists raided many of the army bases that lie adjacent to the Gaza border. They pillaged and looted the warehouses. IDF guards were shot point blank by the terrorists even before they could call for backup. What wasn’t plundered and taken back to Gaza was burned and destroyed by Hamas operatives. Even before that, much gear had been loaned by the IDF to the Ukraine in 2022/23. The U.S. emptied their storage facilities of arms and tactical gear in Israel, meant to stabilize the MidEast in times of crisis, and shipped it all to Ukraine. So all of this did create massive shortages.

The second problem was one of quality. The gear the army was providing for the reserve units was old and outdated. Uniforms, fire retardant suits, bulletproof vests and helmets were heavy and cumbersome. And, being 20-40 years old, the gear was not up to demanding and specific current urban warfare military standards. In the first months of the war, soldiers were coming out of Gaza with intense migraines and fevers. What was at first diagnosed as a type of Valley Fever, supposedly caused by the dust kicked up in Gaza, was later found out to be mold and fungus inside the helmets. They had been kept in warehouses for decades, and were unhealthy. This was disgraceful. Hundreds of IDF soldiers had to leave their units and be hospitalized in the first months of the war.

It is projected, that at the onset of the fighting, the many casualties coming in were, in part, due to faulty equipment. This is a new type of warfare. Israel is now relying on drone footage and highly technical instrumentation to seek out underground tunnels, traps laid for the battalions, booby trapped buildings, room-to-room combat. It’s like a virtual reality video game, but it’s all too real. There are human shields being used by Hamas, making the fighting more than dodgy as the IDF is trying to avoid civilian casualties even at the cost of their own lives. After flyers are dropped, telling innocent civilians where and how to evacuate the military zone, four soldiers (from the Egoz Unit) go out into the streets with megaphones warning all to clear the area. These brave IDF soldiers need as much protection as possible as they move between the buildings and through the streets.

https://youtu.be/rk6qoGBr7i4?si=sRFcjy-uEKx3dElZ

When Chaya found out the gravity of the situation, that friends and neighbors were going into battle woefully unequipped and losing their lives, she set out to change the course of events. After seven months of a small, communal project, she joined the logistics team of Unit 11741. Working with Daniel Mael, a digital creator by day, whose family members on the front gave him initial insight into the breadth of the gear shortage, they have advocated for and fundraised for soldiers. At present, distribution has exceeded $20million worth of state of the art protective gear for soldiers. Working long hours round the clock, with no thought for personal gain, UNIT 11741 is an emergency response team on the front lines.

As requests for protective helmets and ceramic plates/ bulletproof vests poured in directly from individual soldiers and entire units, Hitin and Mael got to work. Gathering a small, but dedicated crew of volunteers who were 110% committed to saving the soldiers’ lives, they called and visited contacts who found other contacts in the US and Canada. They were able to bring in 15,000 helmets and thousands of vests, night vision glasses and drones. So many are alive now because of their efforts.

Priority for receiving protective gear wassually designated by the IDF to combat soldiers over enemy lines. This reality is no longer true. Everywhere was a hot zone. They get calls from thousands of IDF soldiers in Gaza all experiencing shortages. Everywhere is lethal: on all the borders, RPGs and anti tank missiles were being launched. IEDs were buried under streets in areas of Judaea and Samaria (aka ‘West Bank’) waiting for an IDF vehicle to roll over it. The drivers, the medics and paramedics, communications staff, field mechanics, and engineers and much of the military support staff were all under-protected. Hitin and Mael receive footage daily from soldiers under attack, whose bases or army vehicles were blown up.

“Something as easy as a small donation can add up and save a life of a soldier combatting evil and terrorism. This is one aspect where we can each make such a huge impact with such a small action. Make others in your area aware of our current situation. Get a group together to sponsor protective gear for a soldier. Once you become informed, it is a right moral judgement to save lives,” an impassioned Chaya explains. “ They are putting their lives on the line, willingly, for us. These brave and selfless souls are saving humanity from terror. I’m just a small cog in a larger machine. It is just so humbling to see someone who faces death, who faces personal loss, who faces severe injury every day. And yet they are willing to go back in and sacrifice to save not only Jewry and the State of Israel, but Western civilization. This is the least I can do.”

Problems arose for Hitin and Mael at every step that had to be confronted and solved immediately. All the helmets and ceramic vests that Chaya gave out had to be unequivocally ballistically tested for being bulletproof, providing full head coverage, able to mount a headlamp or camera to the front. Some equipment and gear was stopped at customs for little apparent reason. Mael and Hitin troubleshot the situation by deciding to internally source their helmets. They connected with a manufacturing plant in Netanya, central Israel, to begin producing the helmets to specific standards. This would provide Israelis with jobs, reduce the import costs, circumvent shipping and customs issues, and would be faster in turnaround time.

Still, the gear being given out would cost each soldier about three month’s salary. So many soldiers and unit commanders call each day requesting new protective gear. Unit 11741 is now asking each soldier to fundraise and contribute what he or she can towards the cost of the equipment. Currently, there are over 4000 soldiers on the immediate waiting list. Each piece of equipment given out can save the life of a soldier.

It is unfathomable that nine months into the war, the shortages are consistent and growing exponentially. The current Biden administration has held up promised shipments that during other administrations, were ordered and paid for. Wear and tear from nine months of intense battle means more materials need replacement.

It would be ideal for synagogue groups or church groups, Bible study groups, youth groups, Hillel and NCSY or those preparing for Bar/Bat Mitzvah needing a project, to adopt a soldier or a unit. One helmet costs $340. There are already reports of lives that have been saved because a soldier was wearing this helmet.

Each specifically, ballistically-tested, ceramic-plated insert and vest for maximum coverage of both torso and back while remaining lightweight and navigable is $900. Ballistic protective glasses cost $150 per pair. As of today there is a direct need of 3885 helmets, 2127 vests and 2013 ceramic plates.

Unit 11741 has a 501C and an Israeli amutah. They are a registered nonprofit. 100% of the donations go directly to the soldiers’ equipment. It is all volunteer with no overhead. You can find out more at http://www.unit11741.com. The team is on Instagram @chayasc, @unit_11741 and @themaelman. They have several YouTube videos as well.

Chaya and Mael are depending on your generosity to save the lives of the soldiers who are fighting for us all. To put this in perspective, each soldier has a family, many are young husbands and fathers. There are female combat and tank units. Young daughters. In Israel, we believe that we are all created in the image and likeness of G-d and that every life is precious. The IDF is not fighting Gaza or innocent civilians, but evil and terror-sponsoring regimes that are arms of Iran. The IDF is fighting to protect all the people of Israel. We all need and have heartfelt appreciation for your help.

Just a note: this is not only about saving soldiers’ physical lives. This also enhances and boosts morale. The IDF soldiers have put so much on the line: their families, their jobs and interests for the future of the Jewish people and Western civilization. The cost is so high. We know that Europe and North America are next on the sights of the Islamists. But it needs to end here in Israel. We all need to stand up in the fight against terror. The least we can do is to ensure the soldiers have adequate protection and their safe return to their families.