IDF soldier KIA in Southern Lebanon, bringing total war toll to 937
Slain Israel Defence Forces Staff-Sgt. Touvel Yosef Lifshiz, 20, from the northern city of Beit She’an. Credit: IDF.
Israel Defense Forces Staff-Sgt. Touvel Yosef Lifshiz, 20, from the northern city of Beit She’an, was killed fighting Iranian-backed Hezbollah terrorists in Southern Lebanon, the military announced on Wednesday night.
Lifshiz served in the 13th Battalion of the IDF’s Golani Brigade, the statement said. Five other soldiers sustained injuries of varying degrees and were evacuated to a hospital in Israel, it added.
The total death toll among Israeli troops since the Hamas-led Oct. 7, 2023, cross-border massacre now stands at 937. Twelve IDF soldiers have been killed since the expansion of ground operations in Southern Lebanon in early March.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in response to the announcement that “our hearts are with the family of the heroic Golani soldier, Staff-Sgt. Touvel Yosef Lifshiz, of blessed memory, who fell in battle in Southern Lebanon.”
“We pray for the swift and full recovery of our soldiers who were wounded in the same incident, after fighting bravely against Hezbollah terrorists,” he stated. “We will continue to act with full force to remove the threat to the residents of the north. May the memory of Touvel, of blessed memory, be a blessing and be preserved forever.”
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz in an X post extended his “heartfelt condolences” on behalf of the Jewish state’s defense establishment.
“I wish to send a speedy recovery to all the wounded heroes and to strengthen the commanders and soldiers of the IDF who are currently fighting bravely in Southern Lebanon and across the other fronts,” he tweeted. “May his memory be blessed.”
Hezbollah began firing rockets and suicide drones at Israel on March 2, in retaliation for the Jewish state’s targeted killing of Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. Khamenei was killed in the opening strikes of “Operation Roaring Lion/Epic Fury” against the regime on Feb. 28.
In response to the terrorist organization’s violation of the U.S.-brokered Nov. 27, 2024, truce agreement, Jerusalem launched an aerial campaign against Hezbollah and ordered IDF troops to advance and take control of additional areas in Southern Lebanon to halt cross-border attacks.
Netanyahu stressed in an address on Wednesday night that Lebanon is not part of the truce with Iran that the United States and Tehran agreed to on Tuesday.
“I insisted that the temporary ceasefire with Iran not include Hezbollah. And we continue to strike them forcefully,” the premier said in a prime time address following the conclusion of the Passover holiday in Israel.
Earlier on Wednesday, the Israeli Air Force launched its largest coordinated strikes against Hezbollah terror targets in Lebanon since the start of “Operation Roaring Lion” on Feb. 28.
The large-scale wave of attacks targeted Hezbollah headquarters, military infrastructure and command-and-control centers in Beirut, the Beqaa Valley and Southern Lebanon, according to the Israeli army.
Netanyahu said Hezbollah on Wednesday suffered “the greatest blow since the pagers,” in reference to the Sept. 17-18, 2024, attacks in Lebanon, which wounded thousands of terrorist operatives. “We attacked 100 targets in 10 minutes, in places Hezbollah was certain were immune,” he said.
