Latrun is the site of many famous military battles. Here, Joshua commanded the sun to stand still and the Maccabees, Romans, Crusaders, Arabs and British marched through here on the way to Jerusalem. In Israel's War for Independence, some of the fiercest fighting of the war took place at Latrun. From 1948 to 1967, the Israelis were unable to gain control of the road and had to build a detour to circumvent the Arab Legion. Known as no-man's land, the UN had to supervise this area of land, until it was retaken by Israel in 1967.
Anyone who ever liked playing with soldiers and tanks as a kid, or still finds military hardware and strategy of interest, will love the Museum of the Israel Defense Forces Armored Division. The museum has a memorial to the brigade that fought here and more than 100 tanks used in Israel's wars are displayed. You can climb on some of the earliest tanks made and compare them to ultra-modern versions built by Israel's own military-industrial complex as well as those imported from the United States.
Yad Lashir is located at Latrun Junction
Sources: Israel Foreign Ministry