Since the beginning of the current cross-border fighting round between Gaza terror factions and Israel, over 1,300 rockets have been fired at the Jewish state, prompting the Israeli military to respond with deadly strikes on the Hamas-controlled Palestinian territory.
As "Operation Guardian of the Walls," as it is known in Israel, enters its fourth day, the death toll on the Israeli side had climbed to seven — including five civilians, one IDF soldier and one Indian national. Here are their stories:
Soumya Santosh, 32, a caregiver from India
Santosh, an Indian national, was killed when a rocket crashed into the Ashkelon home where she was sitting with her elderly charge. The other woman, 80, was seriously injured in the strike. Santosh has been working in Israel for the past eight years and is survived by her nine-year-old son who lives in India.
Nela Gurevitch, 52, Ashkelon
Gurevitch was killed when a rocket hit her apartment building in Ashkelon. She is survived by her husband, who was lightly wounded in the attack.
Leah Yom-Tov, 63, Rishon Lezion
Yom-Tov was killed when a Gaza rocket crashed into her Rishon Lezion home.
Her two sons, still in disbelief after losing their beloved mother and childhood home, told Ynet about their great loss.
"She was a woman who was always filled with joy, who always put other people's good before her own. We talked to her regularly, she was a woman of love who would always extend a helping hand," they said. "We've lived in this house since we were 12-13 years old. It's filled with memories. Our children feel a part of this house. Now it's decimated, filled with shattered glass, complete chaos."
Yom-Tov also had five grandchildren.
Khalil, 52, and Nadeen Awwad, 16, Dahmash
Khalil and his teenage daughter Nadeen were killed by a rocket that crashed next to their home in the village of Dahmash near the central city of Lod.
The state does not recognize the village which has no official status. Relatives and neighbors told Ynet that in the past they filed requests to build bomb shelters in the village, but the Central District Planning and Construction Committee rejected them. As a result, the victims had no shelter to run to for cover. According to witness testimonies from the scene, the girl was in her room inside the house at the time of the rocket fire, while her father was standing at the entrance to the house.
Staff Sergeant Omer Tabib, 21, Eliakim
Tabib became the military’s first casualty in the current round of fighting when an anti-tank guided missile was fired at an Israeli military jeep on the Gaza border, which wounded three other people.
Tabib's uncle told Ynet that his nephew was just one month away from completing his military service, after which he planned to pursue higher education and a job at the Defense Ministry.
He is survived by his parents and a 15-year-old brother.
Ido Avigal, 5, Sderot
Ido Avigal is the latest and the youngest victim of the current round of fighting.
He was critically wounded Wednesday night when an apartment next to his in the southern city of Sderot, took a direct hit from a rocket. The shrapnel from the blast reached the nearby apartment through an open windown of a bomb shelter where the family was hiding.
He succumbed to his wounds in the hospital several hours later. His mother Shani was seriously wounded by shrapnel that entered her breathing passageway. Her life does not appear to be in danger.
Avigal's older sister Tahel (7) was lightly wounded and another cousin (6) who was also at the apartment during the attack was seriously injured.
May their memory be a blessing.