Seven Israeli soldiers killed in Gaza ambush

JERUSALEM (MNTV) — Seven Israeli soldiers were killed in the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis on Tuesday after their armored vehicle was struck by an explosive device, a senior Israeli military official confirmed on Wednesday.

The incident, one of the deadliest for Israeli forces in recent months, occurred during an military petrol in the volatile southern region.

The military official, speaking anonymously due to journalistic curbs, said six of the soldiers’ identities had been publicly released, while the seventh remains classified.

Meanwhile, Hamas’s military wing, the Al-Qassam Brigades, announced via Telegram that its fighters had ambushed Israeli troops sheltering inside a residential building in southern Gaza.

The group claimed it used a Yassin 105 missile and another explosive to strike the troops, followed by machine gun fire. It remains unclear whether this ambush is the same as the attack involving the armored vehicle.

The Israeli military also reported that another soldier was seriously wounded by gunfire during a separate engagement in Khan Younis.

Tuesday’s attack brings the total number of Israeli military casualties since Hamas’s October 7, 2023, assault to over 860, with more than 400 of those deaths occurring during operations inside Gaza.

According to Gaza Health Ministry, the Palestinian death toll has climbed to 56,077 since the start of Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza.

The ministry said that over half of the fatalities are women and children. At least 5,759 Palestinians have been killed since fighting resumed on March 18 following the collapse of a two-month ceasefire.