3 IDF soldiers killed in northern Gaza, Hamas forces in Gaza City suburbs almost eliminated

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) late on Monday evening, announced the deaths of three soldiers killed during fighting in the northern Gaza Strip.

The IDF has been engaged in extended efforts to eliminate Hamas forces in the neighborhoods of Jabaliya, Beit Lahiya and Beit Hanoun over the past couple of months. 

According to the initial IDF investigation, the three soldiers who perished were killed in an explosion in the area of Beit Hanoun. 

The soldiers were identified as Cpt. Ilay Gavriel Atedgi (22) from Kiryat Motzkin; Staff Sgt. Netanel Pessach, (21) from Elazar; and Sgt. First Class (res.) Hillel Diener (21) from Talmon. 

Ynet News reported that “the incident occurred in the town’s western area, where the IDF had expanded operations earlier in the day as part of a battalion-level assault on a street occupied by armed terrorists.” 

Following the announcement, the IDF death toll from combat operations in the Gaza Strip stands at 391. 

Defense Minister Israel Katz issued a statement after the names of the soldiers were released.

“My heart goes out to their families and loved ones who received the most difficult news of all tonight. For their sake and in their memory, we will continue to act resolutely for the security of our country.” 

Israel’s efforts to dislodge and eliminate Hamas’ presence in the neighborhoods of Gaza City have come amid repeated efforts to evacuate the remaining civilian population from the city to enable the IDF to impose a siege on the Hamas terrorists operating there. The process has been slow, as the IDF prefers to evacuate all civilians before engaging in thorough search and destroy operations against Hamas in the area. 

The military said the move into Beit Hanoun was “based on intelligence information indicating the presence of terrorists and terrorist infrastructure in the area.” 

The IDF also announced that it eliminated Tharwat Muhammad Ahmed Albec, a terrorist who served as the head of the Security Directorate of Hamas’ Security Mechanisms. 

The military said Albec was operating in a command-and-control center embedded in a compound that previously served as the "Musa bin Nusayr" school in Duraj Taffah. 

The Security Directorate of Hamas’ Security Mechanisms functions as Hamas’ intelligence service and oversees the security of senior Hamas members. Albec served as a central figure in the Security Mechanisms and as a significant figure in the decision-making process, the IDF said. 

The military said that prior to the strike that eliminated Albec, numerous steps were taken to mitigate the risk of harming civilians, including the use of precise munitions, aerial surveillance and additional intelligence. 

Last Friday, the Kfir Brigade, in which the three killed soldiers served, uncovered and destroyed a 7.5-kilometer-long (4.6 miles) tunnel in the Beit Lahiya area. This was the third tunnel the IDF had destroyed in the area. 

The IDF assessed that the operation in the Beit Lahiya and Beit Hanoun area may finish within a few days.