An IDF soldier is missing following a deadly battle which saw six soldiers killed Sunday inan attack on an armored personnel carrier in Gaza, the IDF said on Tuesday.
The IDF also said Staff Sgt. Evyatar Turgeman, 20, from Beit She'an, was killed in an exchange of fire with terrorists on Tuesday morning.
The missing soldier has been named as Sgt. Oron Shaul, 21, from the Golani Brigade. Six of his fellow comrades were killed in the incident and the assumption is that he also died in the attack.
- The announcement came after the army announced that two IDF soldiers were killed in combat in the Gaza Strip on Monday afternoon.
One of the fallen soldiers from Monday was identified as Sergeant First Class Oded Ben Sira, a 22-year-old infantry soldier from Nir Etzion, who died Monday afternoon in a run in with Gaza terrorists. He was posthumously promoted to the rank of Sergeant First Class. His funeral will be held at 5pm Tuesday at the Nir Etzion' cemetery.
The second soldier killed Monday was Private First Class Ohad Shemesh, 27 years old from Beit Elazari, his funeral is scheduled for 5 pm on Tuesday at the military section of the Mazkeret Batya cemetery.
Overnight Monday, three soldiers were severely wounded and four sustained light injuries in military activity in the area of the Strip. Several soldiers were injured, including two critically in a grenade explosion near Magen Junction, in the Eshkol Regional Council overnight Monday. Twenty seven officers and soldiers have been killed since the beginning of the operation.
Among the wounded was the commander of the elite Egoz unit, who was seriously wounded in fighting Monday morning in the Gaza Strip. He is currently hospitalized in Be'er Sheva's Soroka Medical Center.
The Egoz unit was involved in massive fighting Monday in Gaza's Sejaya area. The forces reportedly killed 10 terrorists, one of which was armed with a sucide belt.
Six dead; one missing
The IDF has cleared for publication the names of the soldiers involved in the combat in Gaza Strip on Sunday which saw Sgt. Shaul go missing. It was not clear if the soldier was dead or alive.
In the incident ,six soldiers from the 13th battalion of the Golani Brigade were killed at 1:05am Sunday in Gaza City's Shijaiyah neighborhood when an anti-tank missile hit the armored personnel carrier (APC) they were in.
The fallen soldiers were identified as:
Max Steinberg, a 24-year-old Golani brigade soldier from Be’er Sheva. Steinberg died with the rank of corporal, but was posthumously awarded rank of sergeant. His funeral date is yet to be released.
Shahar Ta'aseh, a 20-year-old Golani brigade soldier from Pardesiyah. Ta'aseh was posthumously promoted to First Sergeant. His funeral will be held at 6pm on Tuesday, in the military section of the Pardesiyah cemetery.
Daniel Pomerantz, a 20-year-old Golani brigade soldier from Kfar Azar. Pomerantz was promoted posthumously from Sergeant to First Sergeant. His funeral arrangements are pending.
Sean Mondschein, a 19-year-old Golani brigade soldier from Tel Aviv was promoted posthumously from the rank of corporal to sergeant. His funeral arrangements are pending.
Ben Vanunu, a 19-year-old Golani brigade soldier from Ashdod was promoted posthumously from corporal to sergeant. His funeral is scheduled for 5 pm in the military section of the Ashdod cemetery.
Oren Simcha Noach, a 22-year-old Golani brigade soldier from Hosha'ya was promoted posthumously to First Sergeant. His family will gather at the community’s synagogue at 3 pm, and the burial will take place at 4 pm in the community’s cemetery. The family asked that there not be any media coverage of the funeral
The families of the soldiers killed and wounded Monday have already been notified and the IDF released their names:
Lt.-Col. Dolev Keidar, 38, from Modi'in, the commander of the Gefen Battalion. He was killed in the incident Monday morning in which terrorists infiltrated Israel and fired an anti-tank missile at the troops.
Staff Sgt. Tal Yifrach, 21, from Rishon LeZion, a combat soldier in the Golani Brigade. He was killed in a fire exchange in Gaza in the early morning hours.
Staff Sgt. Yuval Dagan, 22 from Kfar Saba, a combat soldier in the Golani Brigade. He was killed in a fire exchange in Gaza in the early morning hours. He was posthumously promoted to Sergeant first class.
Sgt. Nadav Goldmacher, 23, from Be'er Sheva, a combat soldier from the IDF's officers school. He was killed in the incident Monday morning in which terrorists infiltrated Israel and fired an anti-tank missile at the troops. He was posthumously promoted to Staff Sgt.
Sgt.-Maj. Beinisian Kashon, 39, from Netivot. He was a combat soldier in the Gaza Division's northern brigade. He was killed in the incident Monday morning in which terrorists infiltrated Israel and fired an anti-tank missile at the troops.
Second lieutenant Yuval Heiman, 21, from Efrat, a combat soldier from the IDF's officers school. He was killed in the incident Monday morning in which terrorists infiltrated Israel and fired an anti-tank missile at the troops. He was promoted to Staff Sgt. on the event of his death. He was posthumously promoted to Lieutenant.
Staff Sgt. Jordan Ben Simon, 22, from Ashkelon, a combat soldier in the Golani Brigade. He was killed in a fire exchange and the events leading to his death are still being investigated. He was posthumously promoted to Sergeant first class.
Yuval insisted on being a combat soldier
Staff Sgt. Yuval Dagan was supposed to be released from his army service in a short while.
His uncle Yossi said: "Yuval insisted on being a combat soldier because in our family, everyone is. His father and brother were in commando units and he insisted to enlist and become a commando like the rest of the family."
The uncle went on to say: "Yuval loved life, loved giving back to the community and before he joined the army, he spent a year in a center for at-risk youth in southern Israel. We still can't believe he's been killed."
Dagan was raised in Kfar Saba, and graduated from Herzog high school in the city. His friends said he was "a wonderful person, friendly, amicable. Always with a smile on his face, he aspired to greatness, he was a creative person. We're all shocked."
First published: 08:38, 07.22.14