2 more IDF soldiers fall in Gaza combat after Israeli defense minister Katz warns of 'heavy prices'

Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz praised Israel's military forces on Friday after casualty numbers started to climb over the last days. The next day, the military announced that two more Israeli soldiers had fallen in combat during the weekend.

IDF troops markedly raised the intensity of the fighting against Hamas terrorists in the Gaza Strip in recent days, leading to an increase in dead and wounded soldiers.

Two IDF soldiers fell in combat last week, the first since the resumption of fighting. Then, four additional soldiers were wounded, including one seriously, when terrorists triggered a series of IEDs in the Tel Sultan neighborhood of Rafah on Friday.

On Saturday evening, the IDF and the Border Police announced that two more soldiers had died.

IDF tank commander Ido Voloch and Border Police fighter Neta Yitzhak Kahana fell when an Israeli ambush in Gaza City escalated into a two-hour gunfight, during which several anti-tank missiles were fired at Israeli forces.

In addition to Voloch and Kahana, three other soldiers were wounded, including two with moderate wounds and one with light injuries.

“Thousands of IDF soldiers in the standing army and reserves are now heroically fighting in Gaza for the release of hostages and to destroy Hamas terrorists,” Katz wrote in a post on 𝕏 on Friday.

The defense minister continued by cautioning that “the achievements are great, but still, the dangers are great and the prices are heavy.”

According to an IDF update, there are now three divisions fighting in the Gaza Strip, including eight brigade combat teams: Two divisions in the south of the Gaza Strip and one more in the north.

“The IDF is operating with force, providing a comprehensive protective shield for maneuvering troops—from air, land, and sea – while supporting operations with heavy equipment to neutralize explosives and destroy threatening structures,” Katz wrote.

“All Israeli citizens must embrace and strengthen IDF commanders and soldiers and pray for their safety and success,” Katz urged the Israeli public.

IDF sources told Army Radio that the military operation in Gaza is about to intensify dramatically, with soldiers advancing in new areas while significant reserve forces will be mobilized.

The report cited officials saying that if negotiations to release the hostages won't bear fruit, additional tools will soon be activated: "We will replicate the Rafah model to other places in the Gaza Strip."

Also Friday, the IDF issued an evacuation warning to Palestinian residents of the Zeitoun neighborhood of Gaza City, calling them to leave before imminent Israeli strikes in the area.

In addition to intense fighting on the ground, the Israeli Air Force (IAF) reportedly conducted major strikes against terrorist targets in southern and northern Gaza to crush the jihadist group and force it to capitulate and release the remaining 59 Israeli hostages.

Over the past 48 hours, the military said it attacked more than 120 terrorist targets in Gaza, including military buildings, terrorist infrastructure, launch pits, underground targets and terrorist cells.

The Israeli military has reported that over 849 IDF soldiers have been killed since the Hamas Oct. 7 massacre of 1,200 Israelis and the kidnapping of 251 people from southern Israeli border communities.

The death toll includes Israeli soldiers killed on Oct. 7 inside Israeli territory, as well as fallen soldiers in battle against Hamas in Gaza and the Iran-backed terrorist militia Hezbollah in Lebanon.

Last Saturday, IDF Bedouin Command Sergeant Major G'haleb became the first Israeli soldier to be killed in Gaza since the Israeli military offensive against Hamas resumed in March.

IDF Col. (res.) Pini Ganon, a former commander of the scouting unit and head of the Bedouin unit in the Ministry of Defense, hailed G’haleb as a heroic fighter who, like his father and grandfather, fought for the State of Israel.

“This is a family of three generations of heroic warriors. I was privileged to know his grandfather. I was his commander. I served as deputy commander of the Sinai Brigade, and he also fought in the Yom Kippur War. Later, the grandfather also recruited Suleiman, the father. I was his commander when I was deputy commander of the Northern Brigade in Gaza, and I was commander of the scout unit,” Ganon said in an interview on Israeli 103FM radio.

On Friday morning, the IDF announced that Master Sergeant Asaf Kafri, a reservist, had become the second Israeli soldier killed in combat against Hamas terrorists in Gaza since the start of the new offensive in March. Kafri, 26, served as a tank driver in Battalion 79 of the "Hamahatz" Brigade and was from Beit Hashmonai, a small community in central Israel.

The stated goal of Israel’s ongoing military operation, “Strength and Sword,” in Gaza is to pressure Hamas into releasing the remaining Israeli hostages. So far, some 400 terrorists have been killed during the new operation, and some 1,800 targets have been struck.

“The Hamas murderers need to understand: If they do not release all our hostages – our blows will only increase and intensify,” Israeli Defense Minister Katz warned last month.

However, it is unclear whether it will be possible to secure an agreement between Hamas and Israel.

Hamas demands a permanent or, at least, long-term end to the war, while Israel has indicated that it is prepared for a temporary ceasefire to secure the release of the remaining hostages.

At the same time, the Israeli government has vowed to continue the fighting until Hamas is defeated, dismantled and no longer poses a threat to the country's security.