According to Israeli reports, the military is looking into whether a fourth terrorist may have fled the scene and remained in Gaza.
The IDF announced on Thursday afternoon that a soldier was killed during a pre-dawn infiltration attempt from Gaza by Hamas terrorists that was thwarted by Israeli forces.
The slain soldier was named as Warrant Officer Zeed Mazarib, 34, a tracker in the Gaza Division’s Southern Brigade, from the Lower Galilee Bedouin village of Zarzir.
His death brings the total number of slain military personnel since the start of the Gaza ground operation on Oct. 27 to 294, and to 646 on all fronts since the start of the war on Oct. 7.
Hamas took responsibility for the attempt, in which Israeli forces killed three terrorists who tried to infiltrate into Israel from the Rafah area of the Gaza Strip.
The gunmen opened fire at troops as they approached the security fence, with soldiers returning fire. An Israeli drone that was monitoring the terrorist cell’s movements struck two of them, with the third being killed shortly thereafter by tank fire.
“We emphasize that the terrorists did not cross the fence built along the Gaza Strip,” the IDF said, adding that the incident was under review.
According to an initial IDF probe, the attempted infiltration took place around 4 a.m., with the terrorists using foggy weather for cover. They were spotted by surveillance officers monitoring cameras.
Desert Reconnaissance Battalion troops arrived to the area on the Gaza side of the border, across from the Israeli border kibbutzim of Kerem Shalom and Holit. At around 5 a.m., the terror cell fired at troops around 400 meters from the border.
The cell was armed with assault rifles and RPGs.
The military is looking into whether a fourth terrorist may have fled back into Gaza and how the gunmen reached the border area.
IDF strikes Hamas terrorists hiding in UNRWA school
IAF fighter jets carried out a precision strike on a Hamas terror compound inside an UNRWA school in the Nuseirat area of central Gaza overnight Wednesday.
“Hamas and Islamic Jihad terrorists who belonged to the Nukhba Force and took part in the murderous attack on communities in southern Israel on October 7 were operating in the compound,” the IDF said.
Several terrorists were killed in the strike; the IDF said they were planning to carry out terrorist attacks and promote terrorist activities against Israeli troops in the immediate time frame.
“The terrorists directed terror from the area of the school while exploiting it and using it as a shelter,” the army said.
The military emphasized that several steps were taken before the strike to reduce the risk to the noncombatant population, including conducting aerial surveillance and additional intelligence information.
Hamas claimed that at least 27 people were killed in the strike, calling it a “massacre.”
Israel released an infographic showing where the terrorists were operating in the school complex.