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Two Israeli soldiers were killed and an officer was moderately wounded by an explosive device in the southern Gaza Strip on July 26, the military announced.
Both slain soldiers were serving as technicians in the reconnaissance unit of the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) elite Golani Brigade.
According to an initial investigation by the IDF, the soldiers were inside a Namer armored personnel carrier (APC) that was hit by an explosive device during operations in the city of Khan Younis.
Fighters from the Hamas Movement apparently emerged from a tunnel and planted the explosive on the side of the APC being used to transport the technology and maintenance forces, who are tasked with repairing army equipment inside the Strip. The blast killed both soldiers, and wounded an officer from the same unit.
Also on the same day, the IDF acknowledged that a reservist combat engineer who was seriously wounded by a roadside bomb in southern Gaza a week before succumbed to his wounds. The soldier was serving in the ranks of the 749th Combat Engineering Battalion.
The latest deaths brought the number of Israeli troops killed in Gaza and along its border since the start of ground operations there to 459.
The IDF claims that it has captured around 70-75% of Gaza since Operation Gideon’s Chariots began in May. The operation was supposed to clear and hold most of the Strip, but it’s not clear how much of the enclave is indeed held by Israeli troops.
Combat footage released in recent days by Hamas and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad indicate that the IDF is in fact facing more resistance now.
While many recent reports suggest that a new ceasefire and hostage deal are around the corner, the situation in Gaza is only deteriorating on all levels. Israel is showing no interest in ending the war, and on the other side, Hamas is making no concessions.
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israel deserves hellfire as long as palestinians are getting starved and killed, land stolen and the sick talmudic termite infestation of the western media continues to gaslight people about the genetic malfunction of the jewish tribe