(Left to right) Lt. Matan Shai Yashinovski, Staff Sgt. Ronel Ben-Moshe, Sgt. Ronen Shapiro, Sgt. Maayan Baruch Pearlstein, Staff Sgt. Niv Radia and Sgt. Shahar Manoav.(Screenshot/X)
Seven Israeli soldiers were killed in an explosion on Tuesday, marking the deadliest incident for the IDF in the Gaza Strip this year.
By World Israel News Staff
Seven Israeli soldiers were killed in a single incident in the Gaza Strip on Tuesday, after an explosive device was planted on the armored personnel carrier (APC) in which they were traveling, the IDF said in a statement.
The IDF identified six of the fallen soldiers as Lt. Matan Shai Yashinovski, 21, from Kfar Yona, Staff Sgt. Ronel Ben-Moshe, 20, from Rehovot, Staff Sgt. Niv Radia, 20, from Elyakhin, Sgt. Ronen Shapiro, 19, from Mazkeret Batya, Sgt. Shahar Manoav, 21, from Ashkelon, and Sgt. Maayan Baruch Pearlstein, 20, from Eshhar.
The name of the seventh soldier who was killed in the incident has not yet been made public.
The explosion occurred at around 5:30 pm during operational activity in Khan Younis, in the southern Gaza Strip.
All of the slain soldiers, who served in the 605th Combat Engineering Battalion, are believed to have been killed instantly.
An initial IDF probe found that a terrorist attached an explosive device to their APC, which was either detonated remotely or triggered to explode while the soldiers were driving through Khan Younis.
Because the vehicle was completely engulfed in flames following the blast, it took the IDF hours to extricate the soldiers’ bodies from the APC, according to Hebrew-language media reports.
The seven soldiers’ deaths on Tuesday mark the deadliest incident in the Strip in the last year.
In June 2024, 15 soldiers were killed in Rafah after an anti-tank missile struck their APC.
The tragedy comes following a US-brokered ceasefire between Israel and Iran, ending the conflict which broke out in mid-June.
US President Donald Trump and other world leaders have suggested that Israel can use the momentum from its victories in the war against Iran to secure a hostage deal and long-term ceasefire with Hamas.
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