Operation GYS

Part of 1948 Arab–Israeli War

Date	July 27, July 30 – August 2
Location	Northwestern Negev
Result	Failure to accomplish objectives

Belligerents

Israel (IDF)

Egypt

Commanders and leaders

Shimon Avidan (Givati)

Ahmed Ali al-Mwawi (Egyptian forces in Palestine)

Strength

3 battalions

Operation GYS, or Operation Gayis (Hebrew: מִבְצָע גַּיִ"ס‎), short for Golani, Yiftach, Sergei (Negev)—the three participating brigades—was an Israeli military and logistical operation conducted during the second truce of the 1948 Arab–Israeli War. Its objective was to create a corridor to the Israeli enclave in the northern Negev desert, surrounded by the Egyptian army. When the military operation (later called GYS 1) commenced and failed on July 27, 1948, a more modest operation (GYS 2) was attempted on July 31, aimed just to transport goods to the enclave.

In GYS 1, the Israelis hoped to capture Fallujah and Iraq al-Manshiyya, thus cutting a wedge through the Egyptian forces and having free passage to the Negev. However, the attack on Iraq al-Manshiyya failed and the forces in Fallujah retreated due to communication problems. In GYS 2, the forces took a safer road to the east of Iraq al-Manshiyya and successfully escorted a convoy of 20 trucks. A third attempt on August 18–19, called Operation Way to the Negev, failed. As a result, most supplies had to be transported by air for almost two months, in an operation known as Operation Avak.

As a response to the Morrison–Grady Plan of 1946, the Jewish Yishuv decided to erect 11 new villages in the northern Negev desert in order to insure that the territory would become part of a Jewish state in any future political decision. On May 15, 1948, following Israel's declaration of independence, the armies of several Arab states invaded the new state. The Egyptian army advanced along the coastal road, stopping at the Sukreir Bridge and remaining there following Operation Pleshet, an Israeli offensive on the column near the bridge.

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Wikipedia