A total of 10 IDF soldiers lost their lives in Gaza in the past 24 hours. Eight of them were killed on Shabbos morning in the same incident in Rafah, and two were killed on Motzei Shabbos in Northern Gaza.

The Rafah disaster occurred at about 5:00 a.m. when an engineering unit attached to a Givati Brigade was returning from a night operation to the building where they would be spending the night. Suddenly, an explosion occurred, setting the fifth or sixth APC traveling in a convoy on fire. It is still unclear if the explosive device was hidden underground or attached to the APC. The initial explosion may have sparked secondary explosions from the explosives carried by the APC.

The APC burned for an extended period and rescuers were unable to approach it for about two hours. Afterward, it was dragged to a secure area under Israeli control within the Gaza Strip. The APC was very badly damaged, indicating a powerful charge.

The soldiers so far identified as having been killed in the APC explosion are:

• Sergeant Elyahu Moshe Zimbalist, 21, from Beit Shemesh.
• Sergeant Itay Amar, 19, from Kokhav Ya’ir–Tzur Yig’al
• Staff sergeant Stanislav Kostarev, 21, from Ashdod
• Staff sergeant Orr Blumovitz, 20, from Pardes Hanna-Karkur
• Staff sergeant Oz Yeshaia Gruber, 20, from Tal Menashe
• Captain Wassem Mahmoud, 23, from Beit Jann

The names of the final two soldiers are due to be released later today.

Meanwhile, an additional two IDF soldiers were killed in the northern Gaza Strip, when an explosive device detonated near their tank. They were identified as:

• Captain Eitan Koplovich, 28, from Jerusalem
• Senior Staff Sergeant Major Elon Waiss, 49, from Psagot

Two additional soldiers were seriously wounded in the tank incident in Northern Gaza.

(YWN’s Jerusalem desk is keeping you updated after tzeis ha’Shabbos in Israel)