Live Update 
From the Liveblog of
Sunday, October 5, 2025
From the Liveblog of
Sunday, October 5, 2025
Ultra-Orthodox IDF troops operating in Gaza Strip as battalion for first time
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on GoogleEmanuel (Mannie) Fabian is The Times of Israel's military correspondent
Ultra-Orthodox soldiers from the IDF's new Haredi Hasmonean Brigade take part in a beret march after completing seven months of basic and advanced training, at the Western Wall in Jerusalem's Old City, on August 6, 2025. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)
For the first time, the IDF’s new Hasmonean Brigade for ultra-Orthodox troops is operating in the Gaza Strip as a battalion-level combat team, the military says.
The team is made up of the Haredi brigade’s first standing army company and its first reserve company. It will operate under the 98th Division in Gaza City.
In the past, the Hasmonean Brigade’s reserve company operated in Gaza as a company-level team.
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