24 Israeli officers and soldiers were killed within 24 hours

amirhaggag

The Israeli army announced today, Tuesday, that 21 Israeli soldiers were killed when they were attacked in southern Gaza, after two buildings with soldiers inside collapsed.

The Hebrew newspaper The Times of Israel reported in a report that the buildings were going to be demolished by the forces when Palestinians fired an RPG shell at a tank securing the forces. Then a second explosion occurred in the buildings, as a result of a second RPG shell, which led to their collapse.

The Hebrew newspaper described this incident as the bloodiest since the start of the Israeli ground attack in the Gaza Strip, and raised the number of military deaths in the operation to 219.

In a press conference on Tuesday morning, IDF spokesman Admiral Daniel Hagari said: “The forces were operating in an area about 600 meters from the border in Kissufim (in southern Israel) and they destroyed buildings and Hamas positions to create a buffer zone to allow residents of Israeli border communities to return to their homes.” ".

He added: "At about four o'clock in the afternoon, gunmen fired an RPG shell at a tank securing the forces, and at the same time an explosion occurred in two two-story buildings. The buildings collapsed as a result of this explosion, while most of the forces were inside and near them."

Military sources reported that two soldiers were killed by RPG fire on the tank, and a number of other soldiers were injured in the explosion, one of them in serious condition.

Hajari said: “The explosion in the buildings was most likely the result of mines planted by the forces with the aim of demolishing the buildings later, but the cause of the explosion is still under investigation.”

The Hebrew newspaper indicated that a large number of soldiers from the Israeli army's search and rescue units rescued victims from the collapsed buildings.

The Israeli army is conducting an investigation into the circumstances of the incident to prevent its recurrence.