Capt. Elkana (Kuno) Cohen - BOOK - October 7th

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Talk station. Brian Thomas happy to see an update on
the fifty five carse Morning Show rundown and please as
I can be to Welcome to the fifty five Carsite
Morning Show. He is the captain of an elite commando
unit in the Israeli Defense Forces. His name El Kana
aka Kuna Cohen, and he's joined the program to talk
about his new book and give us an update on
the situation in Israel right now. The book October seventh,

(00:23):
The War against SMAs through the Eyes of an Israeli
Commando Officer. Welcome to the fifty five KRSS Morning Show,
Captain Cohen. It's a pleasure to have you on today, sir.

Speaker 2 (00:32):
Thank you for having It's a great privilege to participate
your program.

Speaker 1 (00:36):
Well before we get into October seventh and the aftermath,
I want to quickly ask you, and I know Benjamin n.
Yahoo has not gone on records saying Israel is responsible
for the cell phone blowing the his balla cell phones
blowing up, and yesterday the walkie talkie's blowing up. I
just am in awe of how that was able to
be pulled off. What is your reaction to the ability

(00:59):
to get those devices into the hands of the members
of the terrorist organization and set them off by remote control.
That has really had to have blown his ball of minds,
not literally, or maybe it is literally in some cases,
but they have to be reeling from the effectiveness of
that attack.

Speaker 2 (01:20):
Yeah, I think it's amazing. As you just mentioned, Israel
or the government or the idea did into the responsibility.
But I think that we can learn from the action
that we work very accurate in order to make sure
that there is no any collateral damage. And the only
people who got HERI in this action was the terrorists themselves.

(01:41):
That they were holding pagers and Milwaukee tokis they only
used for terrorisms.

Speaker 1 (01:49):
Well, and that you got them in the hands of
the terrorists alone is pretty amazing. Now, I saw that
the Israeli cabinet has given Prime Minister net and Yahoo
and Defense Minister go out the authorization take military action
against Osbawa. Is this the the limiting nature of the attack?
In other words, you've taken away of his balla's ability

(02:10):
to communicate, or you haven't. Their ability to communicate has
been severely disrupted. Is that does not that represent a
great time to move in because they're going to be
in a state of disarray for a while because the
only way they apparently could be able to communicate is
by mail.

Speaker 2 (02:28):
So I'm not connected to all the information at the end.
I'm an captain an officer in the Ideas. But as
you just mentioned, I truly think that we did harm
their communication and it's probably a good time for us
to react sometimes, you know, we don't have all the information.
Probably the Prime Minister and the Idea have everything, and

(02:51):
I'm assuming that we are playing serious things ahead. I
also can tell you that the Ideas mentioned that he's
moving the center of the fight into up north instead
of the Gaza Strip.

Speaker 1 (03:08):
Okay, Well, pivoting back over to the Gaza Strip, which
is the subject of your book, October seventh War against
some Aster. The is of an Israeli commando officer prior
to that terrible day October seventh, What is it like
to be an Israeli citizen on the Israeli side of
the fence and Gaza being right there, obviously literally next

(03:30):
door with it's an area that is run by a
terrorist organization that has held bent on eradicating the Israeli people.
What is the stress level like? How do the people
feel prior to October seventh, day to day living with
that threat right there, considering the rockets being launched and everything,
I just can't imagine.

Speaker 2 (03:48):
Yeah, I think it's good that you manage how that
you mentioned the fact that we are a citizen. Also
me right now while I'm talking to you, I'm a
reserve captain. I'm not an octaviuty. And on October seven,
I figured that I had to go into the army
to the ideas to defend my country. But that day,
on the morning, I was with my father in law,

(04:11):
with my parents in law. We were celebrating holiday. And
then it's a shocking knowledge. It will be shocking knowledge
for you. My wife woke me up. It was five
point thirty in the morning. She had a nightmare and
she told me she were terrified and told me that
in her nightmare, one hundreds of teubles were chasing us
and I couldn't use my gun in order to defend

(04:33):
herselfs I hugged her back and I told her she
don't worry, everything will be fine. And then one hour
later I was awaken up by the iron daum system
that were activated from the missile that we're shooting from
God that told to Israel. You asked me, how is
it to live here in Israel? So I think Israeli,

(04:56):
everyone who know Israeli, they know that we have great
spirits and we I've been through some dark times. And unfortunately,
while we're talking, we still have one hundred and one
hostages in captivity. One hundred and one. It's it's an
insane number. They're incuptivity already for three hundred and forty

(05:17):
eight days. It's it's unbelievable. But I think we are
with a great spirit. We have our time here right now,
but we know that we will we will manage that
and we will be able to defeat uh, this evil
and this terror group. By the way, it's not just
from us, it's I went through Gaza and soon I'm

(05:38):
going to share some of my experience there. But I
just want to tell you the majority of the people
who live at Gaza, at least the places that I've
been to the northern part of the Gaza Strip, support
the elimination of Israel, the elimination of the West in total.

Speaker 1 (05:57):
Well, that certainly is the is the big sure in
the image that I get, and I suppose that the
October seventh terror operation, the murder of innocent women, children,
young people, people who are not uniformed military combatants. That
reminded me a lot of nine to eleven. And we
use nine to eleven as a justification for launching wars

(06:17):
in the Middle East. And I hear a bunch of
people who are anti Israel, at least lean that way,
complain about collateral damage. Were you going into Gaza to
defend yourself against the horrors of the war that was
launched on your country. I don't understand that, sir. So
to those people who complain only about innocent women and
children in collateral damage, would you explain to them the

(06:39):
efforts that Israel goes through before they enter into it
and start launching bombs and going into combat in areas
like Gaza.

Speaker 2 (06:48):
Yeah, let me answer your question. First of all, let's
put it in numbers. On October seven, two hundred and
fifty three people were kidnapped. In one thousand, two hundred
people were slaughtered. If we compare that to the US,
it's in the seven thousand, five hundred people were slaughtered. Sorry,

(07:08):
we're kidnapped, and thirty six people were slaughtered that day.
It's it's number that everyone just cannot think about it.
It's outrageous. So first of all, when people say, you know,
like a proportional response, what will be your proportional response
for this amount of people who getting kidnapped and slaughtered?
But I'm putting that aside. One second, I want to

(07:30):
share one of my experiences during that time in Gaza.
One of we got an intel of a school that
were full with infrastructures for terror and we knew that
we have to conquer that place. But we also knew
that that school was school with civilians. So as we
always do, I'm telling you, as we always do, we
stuck calling them all out, but no one left the area.

(07:52):
So we use the drone in orders to skin the
to scan the school from above from the air, and
then on we saw that there is Hamas guard inside
that school. They didn't let those citizens to leave the school.
More than that, one of the kids, I think was
five years old try to run away and the Hamas
guard shoot him in his head and kill them in

(08:13):
front of his mom. Oh my god, that time I realized,
we realized that we have to kill those guards. So
after a couple of moments, later, one of the Hamas
guard went on the rooftop. He went holding was holding
a baby. Just in front of us. He was holding
a baby. He knew exactly where we were. We wore

(08:36):
a couple of one hundred meters away. He knew where
we were, where we are staying. And behind them was
a guy with a camera. They just waited for us
to take that shot. And we didn't took the shot
because unlike those savages, I have no other wall to
describe that. We don't use innocent people, and we don't
we don't slaughter baby as they just did on October seventh,

(08:58):
and keep doing, by the way, because a few weeks
ago we just got a great reminder murdering executing these
six lovely hostages that were about to get rescued. So
it was holding that baby what And we didn't took
that shot, even though it's meant for us that we're
putting our life on the line, because as I just

(09:20):
told you, they knew exactly where we were. They could
have aimed any RPG missile at forty seven that they
had towards us. Yet we put our life on the
danger and we didn't took that shot. Later on the
same Hamas gard went on the roofstop again. It was
surrounded by a group of women, one of them banned

(09:41):
a little bit. It was enough for our sniper to
take that shot and to eliminate that threat. And I'm
sharing this experience because I want people to understand what's
actually going on through this war. We're doing endless efforts
in order to avoid any casualties. And then you just
mentioned there's people who protest against.

Speaker 1 (10:00):
Yeah, and I find that hard to believe. But I
understand the disdain so many people have for Israel. I mean,
I know that it exists. I don't understand where that
hatred and disdain comes from, but there it is. And
you mentioned the Gaza citizenry generally speaking, they're all anti Israel.
They want to eradicate Israel generally speaking, which of course

(10:21):
is the goal of Hamas, who runs Gaza. What is
your belief what would you consider success, Captain Cohen. I mean,
if you went in and you were able to eliminate
every single member of Hamas and or Habala, the citizenry,
maybe people who are not members haven't yet taken up arms,

(10:42):
still have that same philosophy, so you'll still be living
next to people who want to eliminate you. Don't you
see that as a possible They could just like phoenix
from the ashes, arise again in a different form or
reform under the name Hamas or Hezbala. How can you
win the war?

Speaker 2 (11:02):
I think first of all, we need to understand that
we need our brother and sister back here alive as
soon as possible, and this is what we're fighting for.
We're fighting for our sake, but also for the Palestinian's sake.
As I just mentioned, Hamasta doesn't care about his own people.
He uses human hills. You're right, you just mentioned that

(11:23):
they can rise from the ashes and through a different organizations.
So after were making sure that everyone who support our
desks is not able to do anything like that again.
In the future, our main goal will be to re
educating them and to show them what life's supposed to dealiz.

(11:45):
You know, if you look at Israel, if you I
don't know if you've ever been to Israel, but Israel
it's a lovely place. We have huge Haita company over here,
the nicest resort, amazing innovation, and just seventy years ago
we went through a holocaust with six million Jews were killed,

(12:08):
so we had every reason to be miserable to tell
the world story and we can't do anything. And yet
we managed to build an amazing state. And yet you
can hear the Palestinians as they pronounce themselves. Even if
there is something like that, they always looked for the

(12:31):
past they have. I'm telling you, I've been through Gaza.
They had the nicest bitches o reserve, but unfortunately they
take every money that they had in order to invest
and build terror tunnel, terror infrastructure, and we need to
make sure to show them that we can do different.
I want to have a boring life. I don't want

(12:52):
to spend the last year I spent over two hundred
and fourty days on reserve. I shut down my business
that day. And as I told you and expecting father,
I don't want to participate war. But unfortunately I understand
that we have to fight it. As long that they
are fighting and they want to destroy my country, to

(13:13):
kill my people, I'll do everything that it takes to
make sure that I'm protecting them.

Speaker 1 (13:18):
I understand that, like a grown up sir, I certainly
understand that. But the biggest problem, the elephant in the room,
if I may be so bold, the Iranians are the
ones that are funding this. If the Iranians would not
provide the weaponry, the money, the war machinery to these
terrorist organizations, I think you would be in a much
better place because the terrorist organizations, as much as they

(13:40):
might want to eradicate you, are unable to do so
without military hardware and rockets. What do we do with Iran?

Speaker 2 (13:47):
You're definitely right, You're definitely right. I think the entire
of the world should understand that and to do embargos
and you know, just world pressure against terrorism against Iran,
against Ri Bala, against the SEA organization in them and Lebanon, Syria.

(14:08):
They all part of the same network. And just amazing
because as as we just saw two days ago, one
of the Iranian UH representatives in his in Lebanon got
heard from those UH UH walkie TALKI explosions. Just show

(14:30):
learn only only you know, only the people who connected
to his Bala had those those radio and yeah, this
guy got hurt. So just show you that deep connection
that they that they have between Iran to to Chris Bala.
And I can tell you that I saw multiple weapons
inside the Gaza strip that were made by Iran. So yeah,

(14:52):
I think the entire world should understand and and and
do as much pressure as we can.

Speaker 1 (15:00):
Well, if it was up to me, I would do
everything in my power to get the Iranians eradicated myself.
They are obviously a source of discontent, weaponry, and war,
and they hate us as much as the the Hamas
hates Israel. So, sir, you're obviously very brave. I wish
you all the best, and you're the fact that your
wife is pregnant, you're you're you're waiting to become a

(15:21):
father in the middle of this crisis is proof that
the world continues to evolve and move on and live,
thrive and survive. So I wish you and your wife
the best of health and uh and you have a
word or two you want to say about your fellow
soldiers before we part company today.

Speaker 2 (15:39):
Yeah, So, first of all, I want to say about
my fellow soldier and about my comrades. I think that
I have an amazing team, and I have an amazing people,
and I wish the war knew them, you know, privately,
because personally, I'm sorry because we all people who want

(16:01):
to leave, who want to be with our family, but
we know that sometimes we need to put everything aside
and fight talk for our country. But I also want
to say thank you for all the people in the
US who are supporting us. It's mean a lot and
I'm very grateful for that. Please keep do that, keep support,
keep even share this interview, do whatever you can in

(16:21):
order to show the world what actually is going on
right now while we're talking. And if anyone has any questions,
you more than welcome to talk to me through my
Instagram account it is Kanna under school who know no
e l k A n A under School k u
n O or through my website l cannat dashcoin dot

(16:44):
com E l k a n A dash c o
h e n dot com. And I can tell you
last thing that hopefully I'm coming soon to the US
for speaking to our to share our experience, to share
the world what actually is going on. And if there
is anyone here who wants me to come to congregation

(17:06):
to his community, you're more than welcome to reach me
out through my website or my social accounts. And I
would like to talk to you with everyone.

Speaker 1 (17:16):
Captain Elkanna Kuno Cohen. It has been a real pleasure
having you on the morning show. Thank you for documenting
this in the book October seventh, The War against Somemas
through the Eyes of an Israeli Commando Officer, Sir. That
book is on my web page at fifty five cares
dot com. My listeners can easily get a copy of
it and reach out to you if they are interested
in engaging in a communication with you. I wish you

(17:36):
all the best and safety, and I wish you the
best of success, sir, in your effort to wipe out
these terrorists. Thank you very much, been my pleasure, my
pleasure having you on the program seven coming up on
seven twenty two. But you have have KSTE talk station
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