IDF confirms eight soldiers slain in southern Lebanon operation

( YNet )

The IDF Spokesperson’s Unit reported on Wednesday that eight combat soldiers were killed during battles in southern Lebanon. They are: Captain Harel Etinger, 23, from Eli, a Squad Commander in the 'Egoz' Unit, Commando Brigade; Captain Eitan Itzhak Oster, 22, from Modi'in Maccabim Re'ut, a squad commander in the elite Egoz Unit of the Commando Brigade; Captain Itai Ariel Giat, 23, from Shoham, an officer in the 'Yahalom' Unit, Combat Engineering Corps; Sergeant First Class Noam Barzilay, 22, from Kokhav Ya'ir Tzur Yigal, a soldier in the 'Egoz' Unit, Commando Brigade.

Sergeant First Class Or Mantzur, 21, from Beit Aryeh-Ofarim, a soldier from the 'Egoz' Unit, Commando Brigade; Sergeant First Class Nazaar Itkin, 21, from Kiryat Ata, a soldier from the 'Egoz' Unit, Commando Brigade; Staff Sergeant Almken Terefe, 21, from Jerusalem, a soldier from the Golani Reconnaissance Unit, Golani Brigade; Staff Sergeant Ido Broyer, 21, from Ness Ziona, a soldier from the Golani Reconnaissance Unit, Golani Brigade.

Since the war in Gaza broke out on October 7, 346 soldiers have fallen during operations in the Strip, with the latter eight being the first ones to fall in the IDF’s operation in Lebanon.

Early reports into the incident in which the Egoz Unit’s soldiers were killed revealed the forces entered a building in a Lebanese village near the border. Inside, they encountered Hezbollah terrorists, resulting in injuries to the soldiers. This was followed by prolonged fighting and evacuation under challenging weather conditions, with heavy mortar fire directed at the troops.

According to the military, the soldiers and Israeli Air Force continued to tail the terrorists who fled into a local mosque in the area after which airstrikes were conducted against them, destroying the building and eliminating approximately 30 terrorists hidden inside.

Military helicopters evacuated the wounded while Israeli aircraft provided support fire to isolate and rescue the injured. Two soldiers were killed in the incident, likely by an anti-tank missile or mortar. The fighting involved close-quarters combat with terrorists alongside tank and artillery shelling.