Five Israeli soldiers killed and 14 wounded in a resistance ambush in northern Gaza.

The Israeli army announced Tuesday morning that five fighters from the Netzah Yehuda Brigade were killed and 14 others were injured, two of them critically, as a result of explosive devices exploding in Beit Hanoun, north of the Gaza Strip, last night.

Israeli Army Radio reported that Palestinian militants planted two explosive devices on the road and detonated them in succession as the military force passed, causing heavy casualties.

She added that the attack continued, targeting soldiers as they attempted to evacuate the wounded from the site.

According to preliminary investigations by the Southern Command, the incident occurred at approximately 10:00 p.m. Monday, when an infantry force from the Kfir Brigade's Netzah Yehuda Battalion crossed a road near the border that the army was using for offensive operations.

Pre-planted explosive devices exploded in the force, and while attempting to evacuate the wounded, the soldiers also came under fire in a joint ambush by Palestinian gunmen. The wounded were evacuated to hospitals inside Israel.

Initial Israeli investigation into the Beit Hanoun ambush: double bombing and a gun ambush

A preliminary investigation conducted by the Israeli military on Tuesday revealed new details about the Beit Hanoun ambush in the northern Gaza Strip.

According to the investigation, the attack occurred as two army battalions were moving to clear an area in Beit Hanoun. A force from the 97th Netzah Yehuda Battalion crossed the road on foot before being detonated by two remotely detonated explosive devices in a well-planned ambush by Palestinian resistance fighters.

The investigation indicated that heavy gunfire targeted rescue teams as they attempted to evacuate the injured from the blast site, resulting in additional casualties among the supporting force and complicating the evacuation process. Additional units were then dispatched to complete the mission.

The army explained that this type of ambush, involving detonating mines followed by gunfire, is a recurring tactic used by Hamas in previous similar operations.

This incident brings the number of Israeli soldiers killed since the start of the war on October 7, 2023, to 888, including 446 killed during ground operations in the Gaza Strip, and 39 killed since the conclusion of the recent prisoner swap deal.

Military sources reported that the incident occurred in an area that has witnessed numerous incursions since the start of the ground maneuvers in late 2023. Air raid sirens sounded twice last night in areas very close to the site of the attack.

The Netzah Yehuda force began its mission following an offensive operation carried out by the Israeli army in Beit Hanoun on Saturday evening, involving units from the 646th Reserve Brigade (paratroopers) and the Northern Brigade of the Gaza Strip, against a fortified Hamas compound. This operation was preceded by air and ground strikes over the past week.

Al-Qassam Brigades following the Beit Hanoun operation: Funerals and corpses of the enemy army will become an ongoing event as long as the aggression continues.

The Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas, commented on the operation carried out in Beit Hanoun, north of the Gaza Strip, late Monday evening, affirming its determination to continue targeting the Israeli army.

In a brief statement posted on Telegram tonight and signed by its spokesperson on June 25, the brigades said, "Funerals and corpses of the enemy army will become a regular occurrence as long as the aggression continues," adding, "We will destroy the prestige of your army."

It should be noted that this incident is the most serious for the battalion since the beginning of the war, as it had previously lost four fighters in Gaza, three of them in an explosive device explosion in May 2024.

The Beit Hanoun incident is the most serious since the "Puma" incident in Khan Yunis two weeks ago, which resulted in the deaths of an officer and six combat engineering soldiers in a similar explosion. It followed another incident last June, when eight soldiers were killed in Rafah after an armored personnel carrier was hit by an anti-tank missile.