Gaza City – Search efforts for the remains of a missing Israeli soldier east of Gaza City’s Zeitoun neighborhood have concluded without success, while Israeli military strikes targeted Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip, according to reports from our correspondent.
A joint team from the Al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas, and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) completed their search today for the soldier’s body within areas under Israeli military control in eastern Zeitoun. The operation, the fifth of its kind, faced significant challenges. It is understood that Palestinian resistance groups have previously handed over 27 bodies to the Israeli side as part of a ceasefire agreement. One body remains outstanding.
The mother of the missing soldier has stated that “Israel’s wounds will not heal until he returns, or his remains are returned, and the next phase of the peace plan should not proceed before that.” She added, “We are in the final stage and we must be strong, for him, for us, for Israel. Our country’s wound cannot heal without Ran.”
On the ground, a woman was reportedly killed by Israeli fire in the Halawa camp, north of Gaza City, outside areas of Israeli deployment, according to medical sources. Additionally, six displaced persons were injured when a drone targeted their tent in the Shuja’iyya neighborhood, also outside areas of Israeli deployment.
Our correspondent reports that the Israeli military conducted airstrikes and demolished several buildings within its deployment zones behind the “yellow line” in Rafah, southern Gaza. Tank and helicopter fire continues to target areas east of Khan Yunis, also in the southern Gaza Strip.
ICRC Director-General Pierre Krähenbühl emphasized the critical importance of preventing a return to hostilities in Gaza and ensuring the rehabilitation of the humanitarian situation, stressing the need to prioritize the protection of women and children.
DZWatch will continue to provide updates on this developing story.
