From the Liveblog of
Saturday, August 24, 2024
IDF announces deaths of 3 soldiers killed fighting in Gaza on Friday
Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian is The Times of Israel's military correspondent
Two additional reserve soldiers were killed in Friday’s explosion in Gaza City, the IDF announces, bringing the total death toll of the Hamas attack to three.
The IDF also announces that another soldier was killed in a separate clash with Palestinian gunmen in a nearby area on Friday.
The troops slain in the blast in Gaza City are named as Sgt. First Class (res.) Danil Pechenyuk, 27, from Bat Yam, and Sgt. First Class (res.) Nitai Metodi, 23, from Ashkelon. They both served in the Jerusalem Brigade’s 6310th Battalion.
The soldier killed during the separate clash with terror operatives in the Netzarim Corridor area is named as Sgt. Maj. (res.) Yaniv Itzhak Oren, 35, of the Jerusalem Brigade’s 8119th Battalion, from Ein Gedi.
In the incident on Friday morning, several soldiers were hit by an explosive device planted on the outside of a building they were searching, in Gaza City’s Zeitoun neighborhood. Overall, three soldiers were killed, four were seriously wounded, and another three were moderately hurt in the incident.
On Friday, the IDF announced the death of Sgt. First Class (res.) Evyatar Atuar, who was killed in the attack. The families of the other two soldiers were notified over the weekend.
Israel’s toll in the ground offensive against Hamas in Gaza and in military operations along the border with the Strip now stands at 338.
