Seven Israeli soldiers were killed Tuesday in the central Gaza Strip, the Israeli military said in a statement Wednesday.
The fatalities were named as Lieutenant Matan Shai Yashinovski, aged 21, from Kfar Yona; Staff Sergeant Ronel Ben-Moshe, aged 20, from Rehovot; Staff Sergeant Niv Radia, aged 20, from Elyakhin; Sergeant Ronen Shapiro, aged 19, from Mazkeret Batya; Sergeant Shahar Manoav, aged 21, from Ashkelon; and Sergeant Maayan Baruch Pearlstein, aged 20, from Eshhar.
An additional soldier whose family has been notified was also killed; and his name has yet to be cleared for publication and will be published later.
According to the IDF statement, a combat engineering team was working in the Khan Younis area when an explosive device was attached to their Puma armored personnel carrier. The device exploded and the vehicle caught fire.
Israeli forces at the scene attempted to extinguish the fire that engulfed the APC and towed it away from the area.
