Two Dozen Israeli Soldiers Killed in Single Deadliest Day of Fighting in Gaza
Twenty-one Israeli soldiers were killed after two buildings rigged to be destroyed by the IDF were struck by a Palestinian rocket with the men inside, bringing the day’s IDF death toll to 24 after three paratroopers were slain hours earlier as fighting intensified in the southern Gazan town of Khan Younis.
Israeli Army Radio reported that the twenty-one soldiers, all of whom were reservists, were operating across the border from the Israeli community of Kissufim in the middle of Gaza, attempting to secure a border zone between the Strip’s northern and southern half.
IDF spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said during a press conference that the incident occurred “around 4 p.m., [when] an RPG was fired by gunmen at a tank securing the forces, and simultaneously, an explosion occurred in two two-story buildings. The buildings collapsed due to this explosion, while most of the forces were inside and near them.”
“The mission [was] to create the security conditions for the return of the residents of the South,” Hagari added.
Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the country had “experienced one of the most difficult days since the start of the war,” and vowed to investigate the matter. “We need to learn the necessary lessons and do everything to preserve our soldiers’ lives,” Netanyahu noted in a statement released Tuesday. “We will not stop fighting until complete victory.”
Similar statements were echoed by Israel’s upper military and political echelons. “This is a war that will determine the future of Israel for decades to come,” Defense Minister Yoav Gallant tweeted. “The fall of our fighters is a requirement.”
President Isaac Herzog praised the “heroism” of the fallen soldiers affirming, “there is no war that is more just.”
The incident was the deadliest since Israel began its invasion of the Gaza Strip in October. Since October 7, more than 500 Israeli soldiers have been killed in combat.
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