From the opening blow of Operation Roaring Lion to the ceasefire agreed overnight Wednesday after 40 days of fighting, Iran fired hundreds of missiles at Israel, causing extensive damage and loss of life.
At the same time, the IDF was fighting Hezbollah in Lebanon, which itself launched thousands of rockets and drones toward Israel as well as at areas in southern Lebanon where Israeli ground forces were operating.
Forty-two people were killed in the fighting — 22 of them in direct missile and rocket strikes, 12 soldiers and one civilian in combat against Hezbollah, and seven others in accidents on the way to shelters, traffic accidents or medical emergencies brought on by the war.
The missiles that wiped out families
Filipino national Mary Ann de Vera, 32, was killed on the first day of the war, on Feb. 28, 2026, when an Iranian missile hit the Tel Aviv apartment where she worked as a caregiver.
On the third day of the war, on March 3, nine people were killed in Beit Shemesh when an Iranian missile exploded after directly hitting a shelter and nearby homes in the city.
The dead were members of five families — a teenage boy, a mother and daughter, a son and mother, a father of four, and three teenage siblings: Yaakov Bitton, 16, and his younger sisters Avigail Bitton, 15, and Sarah Bitton, 13; Ronit Elimelech, 45, and her mother Sarah Elimelech, 71; Oren Katz, 46; Yosef Cohen, 41, and his mother Bruria Gloria Cohen, 76; and Gavriel Revah, 16.
On March 9, Rustam Golumov, 61, and Amid Murtuzov, 40, both residents of Petah Tikva, were killed when an Iranian missile struck their workplace in Yehud.
On March 18, Yaron Moshe, 69, and his wife Ilana Moshe, 69, were killed when an Iranian missile hit their apartment in Ramat Gan.
A day later, Chaiwat Waewnin, 34, a Thai agricultural worker, was killed when an Iranian missile hit a tractor shed where he was staying in Moshav Adanim, in the Drom Hasharon Regional Council.
On March 24, Nuriel Dubin, 27, a resident of Margaliot, was killed by a Hezbollah rocket while trying to reach shelter during a drive near the Machanyim Junction.
Two days later, Ori Peretz, 43, a resident of Nahariya, was killed by a Hezbollah rocket strike in the city after failing to reach a protected space in time.
On March 28, Vyacheslav Vidmant, 52, a resident of Ashdod, was killed when an Iranian missile struck his workplace in Tel Aviv.
On April 5, an Iranian missile hit a residential building in Haifa, causing it to collapse. After 18 hours of searches, rescue teams found the bodies of four family members who had been buried under the rubble in their apartment: Vladimir Gershovich, 73, and his wife Lena Ostrovsky-Gershovich, 68; their son Dima Gershovich, 42, who had come from Herzliya to visit them; and his wife Lucille Jane Gershovich, 29, who moved to Israel after the two met and fell in love while Dima was traveling in the Philippines.
23 View gallery
Vladimir Gershovich, Lena Ostrovsky-Gershovich, Dima Gershovich and Lucille Jane Gershovich
(Photo: Courtesy of the family)
The heroes who died defending the north
As the fighting against Hezbollah continues under a newly declared operation, Eternal Darkness, the previous month had already seen IDF soldiers maneuvering once again on the Lebanese front, for the second time in two years.
On March 8, Sgt. 1st Class Maher Khatar, 38, of Majdal Shams, and Staff Sgt. Or Demry, 20, of Moshav Liman, combat engineering equipment operators in the Combat Engineering Corps’ 91st Division, were killed while riding in a D9 bulldozer that had gone out to rescue a tank stuck at an outpost in southern Lebanon when they came under fire.
On March 22, Ofer (“Pushko”) Moskovitz, 60, a resident of Misgav Am, was killed after being struck by accidental IDF fire while driving his car in the kibbutz.
On the morning of March 26, it was cleared for publication that Staff Sgt. Ori Greenberg, 21, of Petah Tikva, a soldier in the Golani Brigade’s reconnaissance unit, was killed in a clash with terrorists in southern Lebanon.
That evening, it was cleared for publication that Sgt. Aviaad Elchanan Volansky, 21, of Jerusalem, a soldier in the 7th Armored Brigade's 77th Battalion, was killed by anti-tank fire in southern Lebanon.
On March 29, Sgt. Moshe Yitzchak HaCohen Katz, 22, a soldier in the Paratroopers Brigade’s 890th Battalion, who immigrated to Israel from New Haven, Connecticut, in order to enlist as a lone soldier, was killed by Hezbollah rocket fire at forces operating in southern Lebanon.
A day later, Sgt. Liran Ben Zion, 19, of Holon, a soldier in the 401st Armored Brigade's 9th Battalion, was killed when an anti-tank missile struck his tank in southern Lebanon.
On March 31, an officer and three soldiers were killed in an encounter with Hezbollah terrorists in southern Lebanon: Capt. Noam Madmoni, 22, of Sderot, a team commander in the Nahal Reconnaissance Unit, and Nahal Reconnaissance soldiers Staff Sgt. Ben Cohen, 21, of Lehavim, Staff Sgt. Maxsim Entis, 21, of Bat Yam, and Staff Sgt. Gilad Harel, 21, of Modi’in-Maccabim-Re’ut.
23 View gallery
Capt. Noam Madmoni, Staff Sgt. Maxsim Entis, Staff Sgt. Ben Cohen, Staff Sgt. Gilad Harel
(Photo: IDF)
On April 4, Sgt. 1st Class Guy Ludar, 21, of Yuvalim, a soldier in the Commando Brigade's Maglan unit, was killed by IDF fire due to mistaken identification during operational activity in southern Lebanon.
On April 7, hours before the ceasefire agreed between the United States and Iran, Staff Sgt. Tuovel Yosef Lifshiz, 20, of Beit She’an, a soldier in the Golani Brigade's 13th Battalion, was killed in an encounter with Hezbollah terrorists in southern Lebanon.
Danger also on the roads and on the way to shelter
On the second morning of the war, on March 1, Marina Belayev, 68, a resident of Tel Aviv, collapsed and died during a siren while on her way to a shelter in the city.
That same afternoon, Michael Robert Mudge, 102, also a resident of Tel Aviv, died of his injuries after stumbling and being hurt during a siren on his way to a shelter in the city.
On March 8, Rafael Meirov, 21, of Kiryat Motzkin, lost control of his motorcycle during a siren triggered by fire from Lebanon, and died of his wounds a day later.
The following day, Meflah Amash, 26, of Jisr al-Zarqa, suffered cardiac arrest and died while searching for a protected space during a siren.
On March 12, Gaia Oren, 17, of Ness Ziona, was fatally struck by a car in Rehovot while crossing a road on her way to a protected space, after an alert was issued over missile launches from Iran.
23 View gallery
Master Sgt. Alexander Bondaryov, Gaia Oren, Sgt. Rafael Meirov
(Photo: from Facebook, courtesy of the families)
On March 22, Master Sgt. Alexander Bondaryov, 31, a resident of Afula and a career serviceman in a classified unit who was on his way to Lebanon, was killed by a passing vehicle on Highway 6 after he stopped and tried to help two female soldiers whose car broke down on the side of the road.
On March 24, Yaakov Azuelos, 79, of Ness Ziona, stumbled on his way to a protected space during a siren following launches from Iran, and died of his injuries four days later.