Editing Six-Day War (section)

==== Northern (El Arish) Israeli division ====
On 5 June, at 7:50&nbsp;am, the northernmost Israeli division, consisting of three brigades and commanded by Major General [[Israel Tal]], one of Israel's most prominent armor commanders, crossed the border at two points, opposite [[Nahal Oz]] and south of [[Khan Yunis]]. They advanced swiftly, holding fire to prolong the element of surprise. Tal's forces assaulted the "Rafah Gap", an {{convert|7|mi|adj=on|order=flip}} stretch containing the shortest of three main routes through the Sinai towards [[El Qantara, Egypt|El Qantara]] and the [[Suez Canal]]. The Egyptians had four divisions in the area, backed by minefields, pillboxes, underground bunkers, hidden gun emplacements and trenches. The terrain on either side of the route was impassable. The Israeli plan was to hit the Egyptians at selected key points with concentrated armor.{{Sfnp|Oren|2002|p=178}}

Tal's advance was led by the [[7th Armored Brigade (Israel)|7th Armored Brigade]] under Colonel [[Shmuel Gonen]]. The Israeli plan called for the 7th Brigade to outflank Khan Yunis from the north and the 60th Armored Brigade under Colonel Menachem Aviram would advance from the south. The two brigades would link up and surround Khan Yunis, while the paratroopers would take [[Rafah]]. Gonen entrusted the breakthrough to a single battalion of his brigade.{{Sfnp|Oren|2002|p=180}}

Initially, the advance was met with light resistance, as Egyptian intelligence had concluded that it was a diversion for the main attack. As Gonen's lead battalion advanced, it suddenly came under intense fire and took heavy losses. A second battalion was brought up, but was also pinned down. Meanwhile, the 60th Brigade became bogged down in the sand, while the paratroopers had trouble navigating through the dunes. The Israelis continued to press their attack, and despite heavy losses, cleared the Egyptian positions and reached the [[Khan Yunis]] railway junction in a little over four hours.{{Sfnp|Oren|2002|p=180}}

Gonen's brigade then advanced nine miles to Rafah in twin columns. Rafah itself was circumvented, and the Israelis attacked [[Sheikh Zuweid]], {{convert|8|mi|order=flip}} to the southwest, which was defended by two brigades. Though inferior in numbers and equipment, the Egyptians were deeply entrenched and camouflaged. The Israelis were pinned down by fierce Egyptian resistance and called in air and artillery support to enable their lead elements to advance. Many Egyptians abandoned their positions after their commander and several of his staff were killed.{{Sfnp|Oren|2002|p=180}}

The Israelis broke through with tank-led assaults, but Aviram's forces misjudged the Egyptians' flank and were pinned between strongholds before they were extracted after several hours. By nightfall, the Israelis had finished mopping up resistance. Israeli forces had taken significant losses, with Colonel Gonen later telling reporters that "we left many of our dead soldiers in Rafah and many burnt-out tanks." The Egyptians suffered some 2,000 casualties and lost 40 tanks.{{Sfnp|Oren|2002|p=180}}