Rafah, Gaza – A tragic explosion in Rafah, Gaza, claimed the lives of eight Israeli Defense Forces soldiers who were returning from an overnight operation early Saturday morning. The incident marked the deadliest event for the IDF since January in its ongoing conflict against Hamas that began in October.
Among the fatalities was Capt. Wassem Mahmoud, 23, of the 601st Battalion Combat Engineering Corps, with the identities of the seven others yet to be released. The soldiers were traveling in a Namer armored combat engineering vehicle as part of a convoy returning from an operation that reportedly resulted in the death of around 50 Hamas militants in Rafah’s Tel Sultan neighborhood.
The explosion, which occurred around 5 a.m. local time, took place when the Namer was in the convoy’s fifth or sixth position due to unknown causes. Initial investigations by the IDF revealed that the armored vehicle was carrying explosives outside its passenger compartment, potentially amplifying the impact of the blast.
Officials expressed uncertainty regarding whether the explosion resulted from a pre-planted bomb or if a Hamas militant planted the explosive on the moving vehicle. The incident adds to the IDF’s death toll of 307 since the onset of the ground offensive in Gaza following Hamas’ attack on the Nova Music Festival and nearby civilian areas in Israel on October 7.
Hamas has a history of violence, with the group being designated as a foreign terrorist organization by the United States in 1997. The ongoing conflict between the IDF and Hamas continues to result in casualties and instability in the region, with no clear resolution in sight. The tragic loss of the eight soldiers serves as a somber reminder of the toll that war takes on all those involved.