Five soldiers wounded, one seriously, in attack by terror operatives in Gaza, IDF says

Five IDF soldiers were wounded, including one seriously, in an attack by terror operatives on troops stationed in southern Gaza’s Rafah this afternoon, the military says.

According to the IDF, troops of the Golani Brigade’s reconnaissance unit encountered several terror operatives who had emerged from a tunnel in eastern Rafah — an Israeli-held area in the Strip’s south, where dozens of Hamas fighters were believed to be trapped underground.

The army says that a soldier with Golani’s reconnaissance unit was seriously injured in the clash, while three other soldiers — including two from Golani and an NCO in the Gaza Division — were moderately injured. A fifth soldier was lightly hurt.

According to a preliminary probe, two terror operatives who approached the troops were shot dead, and a short while later, a third operative who was not immediately identified placed a bomb on an armored vehicle and fled.

In response, the IDF carried out airstrikes and artillery shelling in the area.