“Operation ‘Iron Footprints’: Terrorist ‘israel’ Suffers Casualties with Loss of Three Forces in Northern Gaza”

The Israeli military announced the casualties in a statement released on Monday. The Israeli publication Maariv identified the site of the incident as the city of Jabalia.

The military has reported that a fourth trooper sustained serious injuries during the incident, attributing the casualties to “an explosion involving an Israeli tank.”

The statement reported that the tank “ignited” following the incident, indicating the potential for casualties arising from the troops becoming ensnared within the vehicle.

In the meantime, authorities have not dismissed the possibility of a roadside explosion or a “technical failure” as potential causes.

The fire was of such intensity that Israeli authorities had to mobilize firefighters to extinguish it.

Maariv has verified that the troops were operating a Merkava Mark 4 tank, which Tel Aviv proudly claims to be “the best and most protected tank in the world.”

The armed forces have confirmed the identities of those killed as Staff Sergeant Shoham Menahem, Sergeant Shlomo Yakir Shrem, and Sergeant Yuliy Fakto.

According to the statement, the units in question were part of the 401st Armored Brigade, colloquially referred to as “Iron Footprints” or “Iron Tracks.”

The brigade has a long-standing history of unchecked aggression dating back to the 1960s, targeting numerous countries in the West Asian region. Their involvement extends to significant participation in several large-scale Israeli conflicts in Gaza and Lebanon.

Since October 2023, the regime has initiated a new wave of military aggression on the coastal strip, heavily relying on the battalion for lethal attacks on areas such as Jabalia and the southern Gaza city of Rafah.

Gaza’s resistance movements have responded forcefully, delivering a robust counterattack that resulted in the fatalities of the trio, along with decisive actions against invading Israeli forces in Jabalia in October 2024, leading to the elimination of Brigade Commander Ehsan Daxa.

Prior to that, the groups intensified their efforts against the battalion by launching a formidable assault on the Zikim area in the western section of the controlled Palestinian territories. This was part of Operation Al-Aqsa Flood, executed by resistance fighters, which resulted in the capture of hundreds of Israelis.

On Monday, several news organizations reported a significant incident in eastern Gaza that led the Israeli authorities to deploy rescue helicopters to evacuate injured personnel.

A correspondent from Qatar’s Al Jazeera television network reported on recent developments, indicating that the regime implemented its contentious “Hannibal Directive” during the incident, purportedly to prevent one of its troopers from being captured by resistance fighters.

The directive authorizes the Israeli military to take any actions it considers necessary to prevent captures, even if it involves risking the lives of their personnel.

Monday’s events follow closely on the heels of a recent engagement in southern Gaza, where eight Israeli soldiers were either killed or injured. This operation, celebrated by resistance fighters, was described as a significant blow to the perception of the Israeli regime’s invulnerability.

On July 4, Gaza’s Islamic Jihad resistance movement’s armed wing reported that their forces had successfully executed a sophisticated ambush, resulting in the killing or injuring of at least 40 Israeli military personnel in the northern region of the territory.

In a conflict that has significantly intensified, reports indicate that by June 2025, the Israeli forces have suffered 893 casualties in Gaza. This follows the operation termed as the al-Aqsa Flood, with 449 of these casualties occurring after Israel escalated its ground operations in the region in May.