A Night of Quiet, a Morning of Grief: Seven IDF Soldiers Killed in Gaza As Iran Ceasefire Goes Into Effects Iran Ceasefire
After Israel’s first calm night following a ceasefire with Iran, the IDF announced the deaths of seven soldiers in Gaza, renewing questions about the war’s purpose and the fate of the hostages still held by Hamas
Photo: IDF Spokesperson't Unit
After nearly two weeks of constant alerts and aerial threats, Israelis experienced their first full night of uninterrupted sleep following the announcement of a ceasefire with Iran. The Home Front Command lifted all civilian restrictions across the country on Tuesday evening, signaling a tentative return to normalcy.
But the quiet night was followed by a difficult morning, as The Israel Defense Forces announced the names of seven soldiers who fell in combat, delivering a sobering reminder of the cost of recent days. The seven troops, part of the 605th Combat Engineering Battalion of the 188th Brigade, were in the city of Khan Younis when an explosive device planted on their vehicle detonated, igniting the vehicle and resulting in their deaths at approximately 6:30 pm yesterday (Tuesday).
“The IDF has yet to explain why the engineering troops of Battalion 605 were operating with an armored personnel carrier that is decades old, when the main armored vehicle of the Combat Engineering Corps, the 'Namera,’ which is in service with the two parallel battalions operating in Gaza,” the Jerusalem Post noted this morning.
In a separate incident, also in southern Gaza, another soldier was severely wounded, the military said in a statement on Wednesday.
As the focus shifts back to Gaza, it is vital to remember that 50 hostages are still in Hamas tunnels, between life and death. At least 20 are still presumed alive.
The hostage release discussion received an unexpected voice this morning from ultra-Orthodox MK Moshe Gafni, who criticized the prolonged war, questioning its objectives. "This is a sad day when seven soldiers were killed in Gaza—may God avenge their blood. But I still don’t understand what we are fighting for there. I don’t understand the purpose—what is being done there that justifies soldiers being killed all the time? I don’t understand this."
Gafni went on to say that "We needed someone like Trump here, who would come and say, 'We’re bringing back the hostages, stopping all of this, and returning to a normal situation.' But apparently, we haven’t been fortunate enough for that to happen yet."