(JNS) Ten Israeli soldiers fell in battle in the northern Gaza Strip on Tuesday, the IDF announced on Wednesday morning. Nine were killed during a Hamas ambush in the eastern Gaza City neighborhood of Shejaiya, according to the military.
Seven of the nine soldiers were from the Golani infantry brigade, while the remaining two were members of the IDF's elite Special Tactics Rescue Unit 669.
Late on Tuesday afternoon, a Golani force was clearing buildings in the heart of the Shejaiya Kasbah when Hamas terrorists set off an explosive device, opened fire and threw grenades at them, wounding four.
The troops sent in to support them were also ambushed, leading to a pitched battle lasting some 3 hours. The forces were eventually extracted with air and artillery support.
The Golani Brigade soldiers who fell in battle in the northern Gaza Strip on Tuesday were identified by the IDF as:
• Head of the Golani Brigade commander's personal staff Col. (res.) Itzhak Ben Pasat, 44, from Sde Yaacov.
• Sgt. Eran Aloni, 19, from Ofakim.
The Special Tactics Resue Unit 669 casualties were identified as:
• Maj. Ben Shelly, 26, from Kidron
• Maj. Rom Hecht, 20, from Givatayim.
The final casualty was identified as Sgt. Oriya Yaakov, 19, from Ashkelon, a soldier in Battalion 614, the School of Combat Engineering.
At least 115 soldiers have been killed in action in Gaza since the start of the IDF ground operation on Oct. 27; 442 Israeli soldiers have died since the war began on Oct. 7.
250 targets hit in Gaza; rocket-launching squad killed
Israeli ground, aerial and naval forces continued to battle Hamas terrorists in the Gaza Strip as the military's "Operation Swords of Iron" entered its 68th day on Wednesday.
Approximately 250 targets were attacked over the past day, the IDF said.
Troops guided an Israeli Air Force fighter jet to strike a terrorist squad in Shejaiya on its way to launch rockets at Israeli territory.
The Israeli military on Tuesday night published dramatic video of a soldier engaging in fierce face-to-face combat with terrorists in Shejaiya.
The helmet camera records the reservist from the Yahalom unit of the Israeli Combat Engineering Corps confronting the terrorists at point-blank range. He kills one terrorist and then is wounded by grenades thrown at him, before entering the building and killing the second terrorist.
Sirens sounded in communities near the Gaza Strip on Wednesday morning, with no immediate reports of casualties or damage.
Terrorists have launched more than 11,500 rockets at Israel since the start of the war.
Israel strikes targets in Syria and Lebanon
Israeli forces attacked targets in Syria and Lebanon late Tuesday night.
IDF aircraft and tanks struck Syrian army military posts and infrastructure in response to launches from Syria toward Israel earlier on Tuesday. An Israeli Air Force fighter jet also struck military infrastructure in Lebanon, and Israeli forces struck a Hezbollah launch post in Lebanese territory.
