Seven Israeli soldiers killed in Gaza after terrorist attaches bomb to APC
Seven Israeli soldiers were killed in Khan Yunis when a bomb blew up their armoured personnel carrier, the Israel Defence Forces said on Wednesday morning, the deadliest incident in a year.
The seven were part of a combat engineering battalion involved in an operation to search for and destroy tunnel shafts and other terror targets.
According to the IDF, a terrorist managed to attach an improvised explosive device to their APC on Tuesday. After what the army called an “intense explosion,” the vehicle caught fire.
Soldiers who rushed to the scene were unable to put out the fire. After “many minutes,” an armoured bulldozer arrived on the scene and poured sand on the APC, extinguishing the flames. The seven soldiers inside the APC were declared dead by medical teams. The terrorist fled the scene.
The soldiers were identified as Lt. Matan Shai Yashinovski, 21; Staff Sgt. Ronel Ben-Moshe, 20; Staff Sgt. Niv Radia, 20; Sgt. Shahar Manoav, 21; Sgt. Maayan Baruch Pearlstein, 20; Sgt. Ronen Shapiro, 19 and Sergeant Alon Davidov, 21, a combat medic.
All were from the 605th Combat Engineering Battalion of the 188th Brigade.
The APC attacked was an older “Puma” which the army is replacing with newer, better-protected “Leopards.”
It was Israel’s deadliest incident in Gaza since June 15, 2024, when eight troops were killed when an anti-tank missile struck an APC in Rafah.
In a separate incident on Tuesday, two combat engineers were injured when a rocket-propelled grenade directly struck their armoured bulldozer. One soldier was seriously injured, the other suffered slight injuries.
At least 1,180 people were killed, and 252 Israelis and foreigners were taken hostage in Hamas’s attacks on Israeli communities near the Gaza border on October 7. Of the 50 remaining hostages, around 30 are believed to be dead.
What a lovely post, Les Miller. Thank you.
These seven young Israeli soldiers who have died we weep for. My heart goes out to their families and I grieve for them even though I don’t know them. Such is the link of the Jewish people, such is the ancient link.
God bless Israel and its people. I am Australian and not Jewish, but I stand with your country and its people. Israel is the apple of God’s eye and has been promised wonderful things. May the promises and blessings made to Abraham and David continue to flow to your people and your cup overflow with good things.