{"id":278721,"date":"2023-12-24T11:28:08","date_gmt":"2023-12-24T11:28:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/?p=278721"},"modified":"2023-12-25T08:57:32","modified_gmt":"2023-12-25T08:57:32","slug":"idf-says-14-soldiers-killed-over-weekend-amid-heavy-fighting-in-south-central-gaza","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/?p=278721","title":{"rendered":"IDF says 14 soldiers killed over weekend amid heavy fighting in south, central Gaza"},"content":{"rendered":"<p style=\"text-align: center;\">IDF soldiers killed in the Gaza Strip on December 22 and 23, 2023<\/p>\n<h1 style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>Emanuel Fabian \u2013 Times of Israel Dec 24, 2023<\/strong><\/h1>\n<p>The Israel Defense Forces announced Sunday the names of nine soldiers killed in fighting in the Gaza Strip throughout the previous day, bringing the number of troops killed over the entire weekend to 14, as the military deepened its offensive against the Hamas terror group.<\/p>\n<p>Five soldiers of the Combat Engineering Corps and a paramedic were killed by an anti-tank guided missile that hit a Namer armored engineering vehicle they were in, in southern Gaza. Another four were killed by bombs in two separate incidents during battles with gunmen in central Gaza.<\/p>\n<p>The deaths bring the number of troops killed since the start of the ground operation in late October to 153.<\/p>\n<p>In all, ten soldiers were killed on Saturday. They were identified as:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Staff Sgt. David Bogdanovskyi<\/strong>, 19, of the Combat Engineering Corps\u2019s 603rd Battalion, from Haifa.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Staff Sgt. Orel Bashan<\/strong>, 20, of the Combat Engineering Corps\u2019s 603rd Battalion, from Haifa.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Staff Sgt. Gal Hershko<\/strong>, 20, a squad commander in the Combat Engineering Corps\u2019s 603rd Battalion, from Yiftah.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Staff Sgt. Roy Elias<\/strong>, 21, of the Combat Engineering Corps\u2019s 603rd Battalion, from Tzofar.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Staff Sgt. Itamar Shemen<\/strong>, 21, a paramedic in the 36th Division, from Lapid.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Master Sgt. (res.) Nadav Issachar Farhi<\/strong>, 30, a combat medic in the Yiftah Brigade\u2019s 7810th Battalion, from Herzliya.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Master Sgt. (res.) Eliyahu Meir Ohana<\/strong>, 28, of the Yiftah Brigade\u2019s 7810th Battalion, from Haifa.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Sgt. First Class (res.) Elyassaf Shoshan<\/strong>, 23, of the 646th Brigade\u2019s 6646th Battalion, from Jerusalem.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Sgt. First Class (res.) Ohad Ashur<\/strong>, 23, of the 646th Brigade\u2019s 6646th Battalion, from Kfar Yona.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Cpt. Oshri Moshe Butzhak<\/strong>, 22, a team commander in the Nahal Brigade\u2019s reconnaissance unit, from Haifa.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The IDF had announced Butzhak\u2019s death earlier, along with four soldiers killed on Friday: Staff Sgt. Nir Rafael Kananian, 20; Staff Sgt. Birhanu Kassie, 20; Master Sgt. (res.) Shay Termin, 26; and Warrant Officer (res.) Alexander Shpits, 41.<\/p>\n<p>Battles raged over the weekend as the IDF continued intense fighting in south Gaza\u2019s Khan Younis, where some of Hamas\u2019s leadership is thought to be hiding.<\/p>\n<p>The military announced Saturday it had killed a Hamas official in charge of supply for the terror group\u2019s military wing in an airstrike in southern Gaza\u2019s Rafah, as it continued efforts to dismantle Hamas\u2019s command structure.<\/p>\n<p>The IDF said Hassan al-Atrash was responsible for the supply and production of weapons for Hamas, as well as smuggling weapons from various countries into the Strip. The military published footage of the strike.<\/p>\n<p>It added that al-Atrash was also involved in supplying weapons to terrorists in the West Bank.<\/p>\n<p>Palestinian media reported Friday that at least three people were killed in the airstrike.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"iw\" dir=\"rtl\">\u05d1\u05d4\u05de\u05e9\u05da \u05dc\u05d7\u05d9\u05e1\u05d5\u05dc \u05d0\u05ea\u05de\u05d5\u05dc \u05d1\u05e8\u05e4\u05d9\u05d7, \u05e6\u05d4\u05f4\u05dc \u05d5\u05e9\u05d1\u05f4\u05db \u05d7\u05d9\u05e1\u05dc\u05d5 \u05d1\u05d0\u05de\u05e6\u05e2\u05d5\u05ea \u05de\u05d8\u05d5\u05e1 \u05e7\u05e8\u05d1 \u05d0\u05ea \u05d7\u05e1\u05df \u05d0\u05d8\u05e8\u05e9, \u05d0\u05d7\u05e8\u05d0\u05d9 \u05e2\u05dc \u05e1\u05d7\u05e8, \u05d9\u05d9\u05e6\u05d5\u05e8 \u05d5\u05d4\u05e6\u05d8\u05d9\u05d9\u05d3\u05d5\u05ea \u05d1\u05d0\u05de\u05e6\u05e2\u05d9 \u05dc\u05d7\u05d9\u05de\u05d4 \u05e9\u05dc \u05d4\u05d6\u05e8\u05d5\u05e2 \u05d4\u05e6\u05d1\u05d0\u05d9\u05ea \u05e9\u05dc \u05d7\u05de\u05d0\u05e1. <br \/>\u05d1\u05e0\u05d5\u05e1\u05e3 \u05dc\u05e7\u05d7 \u05d7\u05dc\u05e7 \u05d1\u05d4\u05d1\u05e8\u05d7\u05ea \u05d0\u05de\u05e6\u05e2\u05d9 \u05dc\u05d7\u05d9\u05de\u05d4 \u05de\u05de\u05d3\u05d9\u05e0\u05d5\u05ea \u05e9\u05d5\u05e0\u05d5\u05ea \u05dc\u05e8\u05e6\u05d5\u05e2\u05ea \u05e2\u05d6\u05d4. \u05d1\u05ea\u05e7\u05d5\u05e4\u05d4 \u05d4\u05d0\u05d7\u05e8\u05d5\u05e0\u05d4 \u05d4\u05d9\u05d4 \u05de\u05e2\u05d5\u05e8\u05d1 \u05d1\u05d4\u05d1\u05e8\u05d7\u05ea \u05d0\u05de\u05e6\u05e2\u05d9 \u05dc\u05d7\u05d9\u05de\u05d4 \u05d2\u05dd \u05dc\u05d9\u05d4\u05d5\u05d3\u05d4 \u05d5\u05e9\u05d5\u05de\u05e8\u05d5\u05df&gt;&gt; <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/7fo6o44Ixa\">pic.twitter.com\/7fo6o44Ixa<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; \u05e6\u05d1\u05d0 \u05d4\u05d4\u05d2\u05e0\u05d4 \u05dc\u05d9\u05e9\u05e8\u05d0\u05dc (@idfonline) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/idfonline\/status\/1738580986537939285?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">December 23, 2023<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>In his evening address Saturday, IDF Spokesman Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari said the military has further expanded operations in southern Gaza, particularly against Hamas\u2019s underground infrastructure.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cEntering new Hamas strongholds, troops are engaged in heavy battles,\u201d Hagari said.<\/p>\n<p>In the Khan Younis area, Hagari said, the IDF was working \u201cvery intensively\u201d against the terror group\u2019s tunnels. \u201cWe\u2019ve expanded combat engineering forces there\u2026 and we will expand the [99th] Division\u2019s abilities [further] in the coming days,\u201d he stated.<\/p>\n<p>He said that so far, ground forces have destroyed or seized some 30,000 items of explosive weaponry, including anti-tank missiles and RPGs, across the Gaza Strip.<\/p>\n<p>In the area of the Gaza City neighborhoods of Daraj and Tuffah, Hagari said troops had found a cache of weapons in a school, including many explosive devices, rockets and \u201cstrategic\u201d capabilities belonging to Hamas\u2019s naval forces, which he stated could have been used against Israeli Navy vessels.<\/p>\n<p>The IDF also released footage obtained from the body camera of a Hamas operative who planned to attack Israeli military engineering vehicles, showing him being killed by troops.<\/p>\n<p>The IDF said troops of the elite Egoz unit operating in the Khan Younis area spotted the gunman approaching the forces and opened fire.<\/p>\n<p>After scanning the area, the body of the terror operative was found, along with his camera.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">The IDF releases footage obtained from a body camera of a Hamas operative who planned to attack Israeli military engineering vehicles in the Gaza Strip, showing him being killed by troops.<\/p>\n<p>The IDF says troops of the elite Egoz unit operating in the Khan Younis area spotted the\u2026 <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/3cBJDTyflU\">pic.twitter.com\/3cBJDTyflU<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian (@manniefabian) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/manniefabian\/status\/1738605236875395556?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">December 23, 2023<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>Despite the extensive operations, Hamas has still shown it is capable of firing rockets into Israel, carrying out launches on Saturday evening toward Gaza border communities and Ashkelon, triggering sirens. No injuries were reported in the salvos.<\/p>\n<p>Meanwhile, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and war cabinet minister Benny Gantz toured the northern Strip and held an assessment with military officials Saturday.<\/p>\n<p>The visit by the ministers to Beit Hanoun came after the IDF Gaza Division\u2019s Northern Brigade assumed responsibility for the area following its full capture by ground forces.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI am sure that [Hamas leader Yahya] Sinwar is sitting in his bunker watching TV, he sees what Beit Hanoun looks like,\u201d Gallant said in a video statement.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis is also true for the Hamas commander who is now fighting against our forces in Khan Younis; he understands how the story ended for the Beit Hanoun battalion,\u201d Gallant added.<\/p>\n<p>Gantz, in his remarks, issued a warning to the Lebanese Hezbollah terror group, which has been carrying out daily attacks on northern Israel.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis campaign is one of the most important that the State of Israel has seen. It serves both the residents of the south and radiates to other arenas,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI am sure that [Hassan] Nasrallah is looking at what is happening here [in Gaza] and does not want it to happen to him [in Lebanon],\u201d Gantz added.<\/p>\n<p>IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi also held an assessment, in southern Gaza\u2019s Khan Younis, hailing the \u201cimpressive offensive\u201d but adding that \u201cwe still have a lot of work to do.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The IDF said Halevi held the assessment with Southern Command chief Maj. Gen. Yaron Finkelman, Commander of the 98th Division Brig. Gen. Dan Goldfus, and Commander of the Givati Brigade Col. Liron Betito.<\/p>\n<p>Israel launched its vast military operation against Hamas following the terror group\u2019s murderous invasion of southern Israel on October 7, in which it killed around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and took another 240 hostages into Gaza. The Hamas-run Gaza health ministry claims more than 20,000 people have been killed in the Strip during the war, an unverified figure. Israel says it assesses troops have killed some 8,000 terror operatives. Another 1,000 Hamas terrorists were killed in Israel on October 7, during the terror group\u2019s onslaught.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.timesofisrael.com\/idf-says-8-more-soldiers-killed-amid-heavy-fighting-in-south-central-gaza-saturday\/\">Source<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>IDF casualties continue to mount and despite extensive operations Hamas is still firing rockets into Israel<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":39262,"featured_media":278723,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[118,37],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-278721","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-7-10-gaza-war","category-Israel_Anti-Semitism_Zionism_and_US-UK_allies"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/278721","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/39262"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=278721"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/278721\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":278722,"href":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/278721\/revisions\/278722"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/278723"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=278721"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=278721"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=278721"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}