Purple Heart: The Story of an Elite Israeli Brigade in Gaza

On October 7th, 2023, the entire state of Israel woke up to what would be its darkest morning. Eli Zilberman, a Lieutenant Colonel in the IDF’s Givati Brigade, began that morning at his home in Jerusalem. As he watched the initial news reports come in, he received a phone call from a fellow officer in the field: “Zilberman, I’m under fire, come quick.”
A few hours later, he was already rescuing wounded civilians from the Nova festival, followed by face-to-face confrontations with the terrorists occupying Kibbutz Kfar Aza.

Not long after that, Eli and his brigade were already in the heart of Gaza.

In Purple Heart, Lt. Colonel Zilberman tells the story of the Givati Brigade, known for its bright purple berets, and its intense fighting between the northern Gaza Strip and Rafiah. From his bird’s-eye view in the brigade’s command unit, he outlines the heroic tales of its soldiers as well as the unbelievably complex decision-making process of its commanders, where human lives are constantly on the line.

Purple Heart is the story of a young, resolute generation of warriors, mistakenly labeled “the TikTok generation,” who went on to fight an existential war—and found both unity and dedication on the battlefield. It is also a heartfelt story of the supportive family that remained on the home front, the crises that emerge after a long time away from home, and the emotional scars of war.