Soldier, 20, dies in motorcycle crash

An IDF soldier was killed Thursday afternoon in a traffic accident near Rishon Lezion, the IDF Spokesperson’s Unit said.

First Sergeant Ganem Zahi was hit by a passing motor vehicle while riding his motorcycle close to Palmachin junction.

He was seriously injured in the accident, and died shortly thereafter.

In a separate incident on Thursday, two soldiers in the Armored Corps were injured when a tank overturned during a routine training exercise at the Shizafon base in the southern Negev desert.

The soldiers escaped with light injuries and were treated on the spot. The tank sustained some damaged.

The IDF said it was launching an investigation into the incident.

Meanwhile, on Israel’s border with northern Gaza, a “Wind-Breaker” active defense system installed on a Merkava 4 tank was accidentally activated on Thursday evening by the approach of an IDF vehicle that the system misidentified as hostile, Ynet reported.

Though the missile connected to the tank’s defense system did not launch, the system fired explosives that landed in an open area nearby.

No injuries were reported by the IDF, and the army launched an investigation to determine the cause of the misidentification.