1967: Sword of Israel
Scenario Preview, Part 5
By Mike Bennighof, Ph.D.
July 2022

If I could design Panzer Grenadier (Modern): 1967 Sword of Israel all over again myself, from scratch, this chapter (and the two that follow) wouldn’t be included. The story of the campaign on the West Bank in 1967 is enough to stand alone as an expansion book. The Royal Jordanian Army was easily the best of the Arab forces that confronted Israel in 1967, and with a little more luck on their side (starting with, not being saddled with their Egyptian alliance under the Unified Arab Command), King Hussein’s men might have had a chance to fend off the Israeli attack. But that’s not what happened.

Let’s have a look at what actually did occur. You can read previous installments here: Part One, Part Two, Part Three and Part Four.

Chapter Five
Jerusalem, Day One

The United Arab Command, established on 30 May 1967, placed the Royal Jordanian Army effectively under Egyptian command, with the Egyptian chief of staff, Lt. Gen. Abdul Munim Riyad, in command of Jordanian forces on the West Bank (and the expected reinforcements from other Arab nations). The highly-respected Riyad had no chance to implement his own plans before the UAC’s commander in chief, Egyptian Field Marshal Abd el Hakim Amir, ordered all Jordanian units on the border to open fire with machine guns and artillery. That move inflicted next to no damage on the Israelis, but did allow them to pinpoint Jordanian positions. Riyad felt he had no choice but to comply. Jordan’s part in the Six-Day War started with a costly, self-inflicted error.

Scenario Twenty-Three
The Sausage
5 June 1967
Jordan preemptively occupied Jebel Mukaber and its environs by sending two infantry companies from the 27th Imam Ali Infantry Brigade to take key positions around Jerusalem including Antenna Hill and Government House – United Nations-controlled neutral ground. This also linked up their brigade with Hittin Infantry Brigade troops in a trench sector to the south called “The Sausage.” The Israelis could not ignore the threat to nearby Kibbutz Ramat Rachel, and they sent the 16th Etzioni Jerusalem Infantry Brigade's Battalion 161 to capture the heights, and if successful, to attempt to clear the other Jordanian positions.

Conclusion
Some of the Israeli tanks bogged down in the mud preparing for the attack, but the remaining tanks and the infantry quickly captured Government Hill. Surprisingly, the Jordanian recoilless rifle units stayed out of the fight, but then launched a counterattack on Abu Tor under cover of artillery to the north. After initial success, the Jordanians were thrown off the hill and retreated. The Israelis then swept down on The Sausage and cleaned out the trenches where the infantry had quietly awaited their fate. Many Jordanians fought to the death, but as the Israeli commander noted, “they fought stupidly. The Jordanian fighting positions were badly planned. They expected us only from one direction.”

Notes
It’s just a small scenario, and one of the shortest in the Panzer Grenadier universe (eight turns!), and infantry fight for a tough hilltop position. The Israelis are highly motivated; the Jordanians, not so much. The Israelis do get some minimal tank support, but the Jordanians have the weapons to take them out.

Scenario Twenty-Four
Radar Hill
5 June 1967
Operation Whip was designed by Brigadier General (Tat Aluf) Uzi Narkiss to cut Jerusalem off from Jordan before the Jordanian army could reinforce its existing positions. On the north side of Jerusalem, he launched a series of attacks across the West Bank from northwest of Jerusalem heading northeast. The attack furthest left was directed at Radar Hill, a fortified rise defended by elements of the 27th Imam Ali Infantry Brigade. 

Conclusion
Despite the challenge of finding and removing minefields by hand under intense machine gun fire, the IDF engineers breached both the minefield and the wire. Fairly quickly Israeli forces overwhelmed the hill with few losses other than those among the fearless engineers and a couple of halftracks that hit mines. The Jordanians fell back toward Biddu.

Notes
A tiny but determined force of Jordanians tries to fight off waves of screaming Israelis who have seemingly invulnerable morale. They get to surround themselves in a huge blanket of mines (easily more than any scenario in the Panzer Grenadier family of games) and blaze away at the engineers trying to clear a path.

Scenario Twenty-Five
Biddu
5 June 1967
In the swiftly-developing situation around Jerusalem, the Royal Jordanian Army had great difficulties coordinating its defenses. To prevent his generals accumulating power that could be used in a military coup against his house, King Hussein had forbidden the establishment of division-level formations in his army. The Jerusalem sector fell under four different brigade commands. While part of the 27th Imam Ali Infantry Brigade fought around the Old City, the remainder of the brigade was entrenched around the town of Biddu which overlooked the key road from Latrun to Jerusalem.

Conclusion
The well-led 27th Imam Ali Brigade held the town and surrounding defenses until the early hours of the morning, causing significant IDF casualties before the survivors melted off into the darkness. The tired Israelis quickly dug themselves in, anticipating a counter-thrust from Latrun toward Jerusalem.

Notes
This is a big scenario and a tough infantry-centered fight; the Jordanians have plenty of mines and wire to hide behind, and while the Israelis have good morale they’re only slightly more battle-hungry than the Jordanians. There’s only a smidgen of armor (a handful of Israeli Shermans) which means this one’s going to be up to the poor bloody infantry.

Scenario Twenty-Six
Abdul Aziz Hill
5 June 1967
Yet another critical hilltop offered strategic defensive positions for the Israelis if they could grab and hold it. The IDF had planned for years to seize Abdul Aziz Hill at the very outset of a war with Jordan, but the fighting around Government House had delayed this part of the offensive. Sgan Aluf Aharon Gal did not fancy the long and laborious mine-clearing operation, and chose instead to initiate a straight-up assault by his 106th Armored Infantry Battalion. 

Conclusion
The Israelis drove their tanks straight into the minefield with their infantry right behind them; they lost two-thirds of their armor in this manner but surged quickly through the barrier. This mad charge panicked the Jordanian officers who quickly headed in the opposite direction, running away with some of their men. Those Jordanians who stayed fought hard but were overwhelmed by the Israeli assault. The Israelis reported finding many Jordanian dead, none above the rank of sergeant.

Notes
With the clock against them, the Israelis have to take the Jordanian positions quickly. But following the historical example might not work; the Israeli player can’t be as heedless of casualties as Aharon Gal so this is going to be tough for the attackers.

And that wraps Part Five. There’s more to come as the Battle for Jerusalem continues.

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Mike Bennighof is president of Avalanche Press and holds a doctorate in history from Emory University. A Fulbright Scholar and NASA Journalist in Space finalist, he has published a great many books, games and articles on historical subjects; people are saying that some of them are actually good. He lives in Birmingham, Alabama with his wife, three children, and his new puppy. He misses his Iron Dog, Leopold.

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