Watan-The Israeli occupation army admitted to the killing of five of its forces in Jabalia camp in the northern Gaza Strip, but claimed they were killed by friendly fire, distorting the fact of their killing in an attack carried out by the Al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas.
The occupation army announced in a statement the killing of five of its soldiers on Wednesday during battles in the northern Gaza Strip.
The army said in a statement that the soldiers were killed in the battles on Wednesday without providing further details about the circumstances of what happened.
The Israeli army spokesman said that five Israeli soldiers were killed in the northern Gaza Strip, and three other soldiers were seriously injured. Minor injuries were not mentioned.
The five killed were Sergeant Batsal’el David Shashua, Sergeant Elan Cohen, Sergeant Daniel Hamu, Sergeant Gilad Arieh Boim, and Major Roy Beit Yakov.
Declared toll of occupation army fatalities
According to the announced toll, the number of Israeli military personnel killed since the start of the ground offensive in the Gaza Strip last October rose to 278.
False killing claims
However, in statements to Agence France-Presse, the occupation army claimed that its soldiers were killed by friendly fire.
Media reports also indicated an exchange of fire between two Israeli forces before a tank intervened and shelled a building that collapsed on the soldiers.
The Al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas, announced on Wednesday the killing of 12 Israeli soldiers in a complex operation in Jabalia camp in northern Gaza, while the resistance factions announced that they destroyed 12 military vehicles during operations in the sector.
🔴🚨عاجل | الجيش الإسرائيلي: مقتل 5 جنود وإصابة 16 آخرين في تفجير مبنى في منطقة #جباليا أمس pic.twitter.com/Z2lUzEtjZP
— وطن. يغرد خارج السرب (@watanserb_news) May 16, 2024
In a statement, the Al-Qassam Brigades said: “In a complex operation in Jabalia camp in the northern Gaza Strip, Al-Qassam fighters targeted a D9 military bulldozer with a Yassin 105 shell and targeted an Israeli force entrenched inside a house with two anti-personnel shells and engaged it in combat.”
It added: “As soon as the rescue force advanced to the scene, a bomb was detonated on a Merkava tank, and after an attempt to retrieve the equipment of the targeted force thrown on the ground, the Zionist air force bombed the area savagely, and our fighters confirmed the killing of no less than 12 Israeli soldiers in the operation.”
Targeting 12 Israeli military vehicles
The Al-Qassam Brigades, as well as the Al-Quds Brigades, the military wing of the Islamic Jihad Movement, announced targeting 12 vehicles belonging to the Israeli army.
These vehicles included 7 tanks, 4 bulldozers, and one unspecified vehicle, according to a series of statements published by the Al-Qassam Brigades and the Al-Quds Brigades via the Telegram platform.