Israeli army says 3rd soldier killed in northern Gaza on Friday

By Abdelraouf Arnaout

JERUSALEM (AA) – The Israeli army on Friday announced that a third Israeli soldier was killed in today's fighting with Palestinian groups in the northern Gaza Strip.

Early Friday, the Israeli army said two of its soldiers were killed and four others seriously wounded in battles with Palestinian fighters across the Gaza Strip.

The new deaths bring the Israeli army's death toll since the start of the ground operation in Gaza on Oct. 27 to 119, while the total death toll since the launch of the Israeli onslaught on Gaza on Oct. 7 rises to 450.

Israel has bombarded the Gaza Strip from the air and land, imposed a siege, and mounted a ground offensive in retaliation for a cross-border attack by Hamas on Oct. 7.

At least 18,787 Palestinians have since been killed and 50,897 injured in the Israeli onslaught, according to Gaza’s health authorities.

The Israeli death toll in the Hamas attack stands at 1,200, while 135 hostages are still held by the Palestinian group in Gaza, according to official figures.

*Writing by Ahmed Asmar