Click to see full-size image. (Israel Defense Forces)
On December 13, the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) announced that eight of its troops were killed while taking part in ground operations in the Gaza Strip.
The troops were identified as Lt. Col. Tomer Grinberg, the commander of the Golani Brigade’s 13th Battalion; Maj. Roei Meldasi, a company commander in the Golani Brigade’s 13th Battalion; Maj. Moshe Avram Bar On, a company commander in the Golani Brigade’s 51st Battalion; Sgt. Achia Daskal, a soldier in the Golani Brigade’s 51st Battalion; Cpt. Liel Hayo, a platoon commander in the Golani Brigade’s 51st Battalion;Maj. Ben Shelly, a squad commander in the Israeli Air Force’s Unit 669;Sgt. First Class Rom Hecht, of the Israeli Air Force’s Unit 669, and Staff Sgt. Oriya Yaakov, of the Combat Engineering Corps’ 614th Battalion.
Seven of the eight troops were killed in a series of blasts while searching buildings in the Gaza City suburb of Shejaiya, according to a notice from the Golani Brigade cited in Hebrew media reports.
“While carrying out searches to clear buildings in the heart of the Shejaiya Kasbah, considered a crowded area overflowing with terror targets, there was a large explosion in one of the buildings and several soldiers from the 13th battalion were wounded,” the Walla news site quotes the notice saying.
According to the notice, a second blast went off when a second group attempted to come to the aid of the injured soldiers. A third force then attempted to reach a group, and it was hit by an explosive as well.
The Israeli Kan public broadcaster said that the troops initially responded to gunfire from the apparently booby-trapped building.
Meanwhile, Palestinian media reported that the ambush was set up by the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of the Hamas Movement.
The death of the eight brought the toll of Israeli troops killed since the beginning of ground operations in Gaza to 113. More than 600 others have been reportedly wounded.
The IDF expanded ground operations in northern Gaza to include Shejaiya after the end of the week-long ceasefire on December 1. It also launched an offensive in the city of Khan Yunis in the southern part of the Strip. Since then, its losses have been on the rise.
The successful ambush in Shejaiya shows how Hamas and other Palestinian armed factions are effectively improving their tactics.
