IDF names additional soldier killed in Gaza
IDF death toll rises to 43, as military clears for publication the names of five more soldiers killed during Gaza op in last 24-hours, before ceasefire came into effect.
The IDF cleared for publication Sunday the name of a soldier killed in Gaza, bringing the overall death toll of soldiers since the operation began 19 days ago to 43.
First Class (res.) Barak Refael Degorker, a 27-year-old from the town of Gan Yavne, was identified Sunday morning as the soldier who was killed Saturday night by a mortar shell near the Gaza Strip border.
Captain Liad Lavi, an infantry corps soldiers, 22, from Telmi Yossef succumbed to his wounds Friday after he was wounded on Thursday during operational duty in southern Gaza.
Sergeant Major Rami Chalon, 39, from Hadera also succumbed to his wounds after sustaining injuries last Tuesday in fighting along the Gaza-Israel border.
The fallen soldiers from fighting Friday and early Saturday are Staff Sergeant Amit Yeori, Lt. Roy Peles, Staff Sergeant Avraham Grintzvaig, 21, from Petah Tikvah; and Staff Sergeant Gal Bason, 21, from Holon.
Yeori, 20, from Jerusalem, was killed Friday when Maglan forces clashed with terrorists in southern Gaza.
Peles, 21, from Tel Aviv, was killed overnight Friday after the armored personnel carrier he was traveling in was hit. He was raised to the rank of lieutenant after the incident.
Grintzvaig, 21, from Petah Tikvah, was a Nahal soldier and was killed as part of operational duty in the northern Gaza Strip overnight Friday, he was promoted to the rank of staff sergeant in wake of the incident.
Bason, 21, from Holon was an engineer corps soldier and was killed as part of operational duty in northern Gaza.
Earlier Saturday the family of Staff Sergeant Guy Boyland (21) from Kibbutz Ginosar were notified his death in Gaza. Boyland served as a combat soldier in the IDF's Engineer Corps.
Boyland's funeral will be held on Sunday at 5pm at Kibbutz Ginosar.
Another IDF soldier was killed on Friday in the central Gaza Strip, the IDF spokesman said. The IDF named the soldier as Staff Sgt. Guy Levy, 21 from Kfar Vradim, an Armored Corps combat soldier.
Just before the beginning of Shabbat, thousands made it to the Rehovot funeral of Sergeant First Class (reservist) Yair Ashkenazi who was killed in the early morning hours of Friday during operational activity in the northern Gaza Strip.
Also on Friday, the Chief Military Rabbi Brig.-Gen. Raffi Peretz has declared MIA soldier Staff Sgt. Oron Shaul dead at 2:40pm.
Golani Brigade soldier Shaul, 22, was killed in the Gaza Strip on Sunday, July 20, when Palestinian terrorists fired an anti-tank missile at the armored personnel carrier (APC) he was riding in. Six other soldiers were also killed in that incident.
But while the bodies of the other six were identified, Shaul went missing. Hamas claimed to have kidnapped him but so far, the Islamist Movement has yet to provide proof to their claims.
The army said the Chief Military Rabbi considered halacha, medical and other relevant considerations before making the decision.
Head of the IDF's Manpower Directorate, Maj.-Gen. Orna Barbivai, Chief Military Rabbi Peretz and the commander of the 366th Reserve Division arrived at the Shaul family home on Friday afternoon to deliver the news.
The family was told that the halacha dictates Staff Sgt. Oron Shaul is declared a fallen IDF soldier whose place of burial is unknown. Due to the fact he was declared a soldier whose place of burial is unknown, there will be no funeral and the family is not obligated to sit shiva, the week-long mourning period.
A senior Palestinian source involved in the details of the incidents told Ynet that Hamas has been receiving messages from Israel through a third party that it knows Oron Shaul is no longer among the living, and that Hamas only has a body, not a living captive.
