Israeli soldier killed in Rafah fighting as IDF intensifies operations in Khan Younis

336 Israeli soldiers killed in ground operations in Gaza

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An Israeli soldier was killed on Thursday, the IDF stated as its troops continued the intense fighting in the southern Gaza towns of Rafah and Khan Younis these past days.

The fallen soldier was identified as 19-year-old Sgt. Ori Ashkenazi Nechemya from Ashkelon. Nechemya served in the 401st Armored Brigade’s 46th Battalion and was killed when an anti-tank missile struck him, according to the army.

Since the Israel Defense Forces initiated their ground incursion into the Gaza Strip, 336 soldiers have been killed by Hamas.

Israeli troops continue to clear the area of Rafah even after defeating the local Hamas Brigade, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant stated during a visit to the troops on Thursday.

Gallant said IDF troops have so far destroyed 150 tunnels in the strategically important area. Rafah, located on the border with Egypt, has tunnels extending from the town to the Egyptian side of the border. For decades, these tunnels have been used to supply Hamas terrorists with weapons and building materials.

The IDF’s 162nd Division is currently operating in the Tel al-Sultan area of Rafah, and has eliminated dozens of terrorists over the past 24 hours during joint operations with the Israeli Air Force (IAF).

4/ Egyptian officials cited by the Wall Street Journal on August 22 said that Egypt has refused any Israeli presence on the Philadelphi Corridor, which runs along the Egypt-Gaza Strip border. pic.twitter.com/tbGaAvh0kv
— Institute for the Study of War (@TheStudyofWar) August 22, 2024

North of Rafah, the 98th Division continued its operations in the northern part of Khan Younis and on the outskirts of Deir al-Balah, areas that the IDF has not yet entered. According to the IDF, the soldiers eliminated dozens of terrorists and destroyed dozens of buildings used by Hamas.

In one incident, Israeli troops spotted a terrorist who posed a threat by using a drone. They then directed a combat helicopter to the terrorist’s location, which eliminated him.

The IDF reported that it struck sites from which rockets were launched at Israel over the past week. Khan Younis borders on the humanitarian zone located along the Gaza coast. In August, the IDF issued nine evacuation orders for areas previously designated part of the zone, after they were used to launch rockets at Israel.

Overall, the IAF struck some 30 terror targets across the Gaza Strip over the past day.

According to the IDF, it has eliminated approximately 17,000 combatants in the Gaza Strip so far and eliminated an additional 1,000 terrorists inside Israel during the Hamas invasion on Oct. 7.