[1] The incident was cited by The New York Times as an important milestone in the integration of women in the army, symbolizing a significant shift after a prolonged struggle for acceptance.

[5] Chief of Staff Aviv Kochavi noted: “I believe that women tank crews will carry out the border protection mission professionally and with great success and will form a significant part of the IDF's operational efforts.”[5] On 7 October 2023, on the holiday of Simchat Torah, militants presumed to be from the militant group Hamas attacked Kibbutz Holit near the southern Gaza Strip in a surprise attack on Israel and killed at least 13 people.

[6] The tank crew of the Caracal battalion, under the command of Captain Carney, was on the border with Egypt at the Nitsana base on the morning of October 7, approximately 40 km south of the Gaza Strip.

], the battalion, comprising two Merkava IV tanks and a Namer armored personnel carrier, drove along Highway 232 north near the border with the Gaza Strip.

[citation needed] According to the recollections of Senior Sergeant Tal-Sara, after arriving at Kibbutz Sufa and seeing a damaged IDF armored personnel carrier with wounded soldiers around it, her tank came under heavy fire from three directions, and she began to realize that they were under attack.

[4] At the same time, the company commander, Captain Karni, moved from an armored personnel carrier to a tank and fought with the team in and around Kibbutz Holit, eliminating dozens of Hamas members.

[4][1] Seven 20-year-old Israeli tank crews took part in the battle: Hagar, Hila, Tal-Sara, Michal, Karni, Ophir and Tamar, who allegedly killed 50 members of Hamas.