TEHRAN – An explosive device planted by the Palestinian resistance leaves Israeli occupation forces injured.  

The Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) have confirmed that nine of its soldiers were wounded during an incident in the Shujaiya area in the northern Gaza Strip.

Among the injured are two high-ranking officers: a division commander and a battalion commander.

Israeli media reported that the injuries occurred after an explosive device was detonated “during sweeping operations in the area,” citing official IOF statements.

The reports specified that the wounded included the deputy commander of the 252nd Division and the commander of the 6310th Battalion, both serving within the IOF.

On Friday, the occupation regime announced the deaths of two IOF soldiers and the wounding of seven others, including some in critical condition, during separate battles in the southern Gaza Strip.

In a statement, the IOF clarified that the two incidents occurred during ongoing military operations across the Gaza Strip. In the first incident, soldier Isay Alekhm Urbach was killed, while another soldier from the 605th Engineering Battalion, part of the Barak Division, was seriously injured.

Last Thursday, the al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas, announced responsibility for targeting an Israeli engineering unit of 12 soldiers. The unit was reportedly preparing for a demolition mission inside a house near the al-Fadayeeh intersection in the al-Tanour neighborhood, east of Rafah in southern Gaza.

In an editorial, the Israeli newspaper Haaretz argued that the IOF’s plans to escalate military operations in Gaza were doomed from the start. The article emphasized that the campaign “will not achieve its objectives” and “lacks any legitimacy,” both among segments of the Israeli public and internationally.

This follows a unanimous decision by the Ministerial Committee on Security (the Cabinet) to “expand the scope of military operations in the Gaza Strip.” Israeli media described this move as “dramatic.”

According to figures released by the occupation regime’s military, at least 856 Israeli soldiers have been killed since the onset of what many describe as the regime’s genocidal war on Gaza, which began on October 7, 2023. The IOF also reported that approximately 12,000 soldiers have been injured.

Analysts argue that the IOF’s policy is to censor casualty figures. This approach suggests that actual figures may be significantly higher.