An Israeli soldier was killed during an abduction attempt by terrorists who also attempted to snatch his body in the southern Gaza Strip, the Israel Defense Forces announced Wednesday.
The name of the soldier was not immediately released for publication.
According to an ongoing IDF probe, several Hamas gunmen emerged from a tunnel and attacked Israeli troops in southern Gaza’s Khan Younis.
During the attack, gunmen attempted to abduct a soldier who had been operating an excavator.
The soldier “struggled with them and the terrorists shot and killed him,” said the military.
The gunmen then tried to make off with the soldier’s body, but other Israeli forces guarding the area opened fire on the operatives, thwarting the attempt, the army said.
Earlier Wednesday, Hamas’s military wing announced its gunmen had attempted to capture a soldier east of Khan Younis, but that the “field conditions did not allow for it, so they killed him and seized his weapon.”
The incident came as the IDF continued to dig in in southern Gaza and expanded its ground offensive in northern Gaza’s Beit Hanoun, after a Hamas ambush in the area killed five soldiers earlier in the week.
Troops of the Givati Brigade joined forces with the 99th Division in efforts to surround the northern city, where the military estimated dozens of Hamas operatives are holed up in tunnels.
“The forces are operating to destroy terror infrastructure, eliminate terrorists and destroy Hamas’s military capabilities in the area,” the IDF said.
Five soldiers were killed earlier this week by three remotely detonated roadside bombs, placed by Hamas operatives ahead of their arrival in the area. As the third explosion went off, gunmen opened fire on the troops. Fourteen other soldiers were injured in the Monday night ambush.
Later Wednesday afternoon, IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir claimed the ongoing offensive against Hamas could enable a hostage deal with the terror group.
“During Operation Gideon’s Chariots, we dealt a severe blow to Hamas’s governmental and military capabilities, and thanks to the operational strength we demonstrated, the conditions to advance a deal for the release of hostages have been created,� he said at a National Security College course graduation ceremony.
Gaza’s Hamas-run civil defense agency said 22 people — including at least six children — were killed in Israeli strikes Wednesday.
Agency spokesman Mahmud Bassal said one strike killed 10 members of the same family sheltering in the Al-Mawasi area west of Khan Yunis, while another on the Al-Shati camp near Gaza City left 10 dead and more than 30 wounded.
Asked for comment, the IDF said it was looking into the reports.
The Israeli offensive and restrictions on supplies entering Gaza have taken a heavy toll on its medical system, under immense strain as casualties continue to rack up.
As sobbing crowds of mourners gathered at Gaza City’s al-Shifa Hospital, its director Mohammad Abu Salmiya told journalists Wednesday morning that it would “be completely out of service due to the fuel shortage” within hours.
The IDF announced the escalation of its ground offensive hours after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu wrapped up his second White House meeting with US President Donald Trump during a four-day visit to Washington.
Trump has been ramping up pressure on Israel to strike a hostage-ceasefire deal with Hamas, but Netanyahu nevertheless left his last meeting with the president Tuesday night without a public announcement of a breakthrough in talks. The premier is expected to fly back Thursday to Israel.
US Mideast envoy Steve Witkoff told reporters Tuesday that he was hopeful a deal could be reached this week, claiming that three of the four sticking points between the two parties had been resolved in proximity talks in Doha.
But sources speaking to The Times of Israel said the US is more optimistic than Egyptian and Qatari mediators about the chances of a deal being reached this week.
Witkoff pushed back his Tuesday flight to Qatar — where he had planned to join the ongoing talks — according to sources speaking to The Times of Israel, indicating that significant gaps still remain in negotiations.
The chief obstacle, according to a US official and sources familiar with the talks, is the partial withdrawal of the IDF from Gaza during the period of the 60-day truce.
Israel is insisting that it remain in the Morag Corridor in southern Gaza, near where it says it plans to create a “humanitarian city� in which the Strip’s entire population will be herded and prevented from leaving once vetted.
Defense Minister Israel Katz briefed reporters on the idea earlier this week, sparking international uproar with talk of concentrating a population of 2 million people in such a small area, while barring them from leaving.
Katz’s briefing reportedly marred talks in Doha, causing Hamas to be less flexible regarding the withdrawal of Israeli forces.
The defense minister framed the plan as a mechanism for protecting the population, with humanitarian aid to be distributed in the area.
However, confidence in Israeli humanitarian initiatives is low since Gazans started coming under near-daily IDF gunfire trying to reach Israeli-established aid sites established by Israel and operated by the nascent Gaza Humanitarian Foundation since May.
Due to disagreements over the parameters of the IDF’s withdrawal from Gaza, Israel was slated to submit a new set of maps on Wednesday showing its proposed redeployment of troops after the previous version was rejected by Hamas, a source familiar with the negotiations told The Times of Israel.