Illustrative image. (Israeli Defense Forces)
The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) acknowledged on May 21 that a soldier was killed during fighting in the southern Gaza Strip a day earlier, making the second such loss since the military launched a large-scale offensive, codenamed Operation Gideon’s Chariots to completely take control of the Palestinian enclave.
The slain soldier was serving in the 7th Armored Brigade’s 82nd Battalion, the military said in a statement, adding that the incident took place in the city of Khan Younis, which became the focus of the ongoing offensive in recent days.
According to a preliminary military probe, the soldier was killed when a bomb planted by Palestinian fighters exploded in a building, which then collapsed with him inside.
The soldier had gone into the building with a second soldier following initial scans with a drone and a dog, the investigation found. When the two reached the top floor of the building, a bomb that had been planted there exploded, according to the probe. The detonation caused the building to collapse.
It took Israeli troops several hours to extract the body from the rubble, the IDF said. The second soldier was rescued relatively quickly with minor injuries.
The IDF on May 19 ordered all Palestinians to move from Khan Younis to a humanitarian zone to the southeast, warning that it was preparing an “unprecedented attack” on the city.
Separately, the IDF announced on May 21 that the Israeli Air Force had struck 115 targets across the Strip over the past day, hitting rocket launchers, buildings used by “terror groups,” tunnels, other infrastructure, and cells of operatives. The Israeli Navy also shelled areas of northern Gaza to assist troops on the ground, according to the military.
The IDF also announced that a recent drone strike in northern Gaza had killed Mohammed Shaheen, a member of Hamas’s elite Nukhba force in the group’s East Jabalia Battalion who participated in the October 7 surprise attack on Israel in 2023.
Hamas-run authorities in Gaza say Israeli strikes killed at least 45 people, including several women and a week-old infant, over the past 24 hours.
The IDF began preparing for Operation Gideon’s Chariots earlier this month. Thousands of reservists were called up and elite formations were deployed to Gaza from other fronts.
Israeli officials stated that the large-scale offensive would see the IDF “conquer” Gaza and retain the territory, attack Hamas, prevent the group from taking control of humanitarian aid supplies, and move Palestinians from the Strip’s north to its south. Despite facing international backlash, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appears to be determined to go on with the offensive.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
SouthFront: Analysis and Intelligence
NOW hosted at southfront.press
Previously, SouthFront: Analysis and Intelligence was at southfront.org.
The .org domain name had been blocked by the US (NATO) (https://southfront.press/southfront-org-blocked-by-u-s-controlled-global-internet-supervisor/) globally, outlawed and without any explanation
Back before that, from 2013 to 2015, SouthFront: Analysis and Intelligence was at southfront.com
the small hats, small brains unable to provide any details on the purpose of this 99th final offensive. what is it supposed to achieve? they are lost, alone and demented, floating in an ocean in need of psychological help
my favorite goal is ‘prevent the group from taking control of humanitarian aid supplies’.
lol. what aid?? only psychological help they need is a .308 to the brain pan. they are drowning in an ocean of baby blood they spilled.
another country had to air drop food, then build a ‘pier’, then give up.
make ovens great again.
every time i see a dead gazan baby like that, i think of the frozen corpses at dachau and smile.
next time, the entire world will be shoving you fucks into ovens.
that’s entirely understandable under the circumstances. but at the same time there are many jews who have been at the forefront of opposition to the gaza genocide, often at great cost to themselves. glenn greenwald, medea benjamin, miko peled, max blumenthal, aaron mate, norman finkelstein and very many others. they have been subjected to vicious attacks, threats, intimidation and smear campaigns as a result. the same applies to many jews who are not public figures.
i was passing through a village where a small demonstration of about 15 people with banners and placards was taking place. they were all ordinary middle aged people and they were all jews. people of courage and principle and decent human values. they deserve our respect.
i grew up jewish.
it pains me to say it… but its no different than being told the good blacks make up for the bad ones.
they dont. the cost for the 5% that arent pieces of shit is not worth it to humanity at large.
we can not coexist with a religion that views every one else as an animal.
israel is a genocidal country.
it is obvious that these infants are in fact hardened hamas leaders. at least that what the israeli will say, and the american leadership will saction anyone that points out how ridiculous and atrocious that is. israel is quite simply the enemy of humanity.
israel has the right to protect itself against anti semitic toddlers armed with deadly dolls and rattles.
same rethoric as ever…filthy criminal mothefacka zio 🐷🐷
“adversaries to all men”
rest in sh*t criminal bestard zio 🐷🐷
take time to remember the 6 trillions jews who suffered and puke….
well done idf, keep smoking the goat fuckers