Three Israeli soldiers killed in tank explosion amid fighting in northern Gaza

Three Israeli soldiers fell amid intense fighting in northern Gaza on Monday, when their tank suffered an explosion due to an as yet unknown cause.

The soldiers were identified as Staff Sgt. Shoham Menahem (21), from Yardena; Sgt. Shlomo Yakir Shrem (20), from Efrat; and Sgt. Yuliy Faktor (19), from Rishon LeZion.

In the same incident, an officer was severely injured. He was evacuated to a hospital to receive medical treatment and his family has been notified.

All four soldiers served in the 401st Armored Brigade’s 52nd Battalion. The three soldiers were killed inside their tank during a brigade-level attack on the town of Jabaliya in the northern Gaza Strip.

According to Army Radio, the IDF hasn’t finally determined what caused the explosion in the tank. The initial assessment was that an anti-tank rocket from Hamas was to blame.

However, the military now estimates with high probability that one of the tank’s shells exploded, for an unknown reason.

The IDF continues to investigate the circumstances of the explosion.

The incident occurred around noon, amid the 401st Brigade’s mission to defeat the remaining Hamas terrorists in the area and clear it of any terror infrastructure, both above and below the ground.

According to Ynet News, Shoham Menahem enlisted in the same battalion as his father did 50 years ago. His father, Shmuel, fought during the Yom Kippur War and became a prisoner of war.

“Shoham’s father was captured on the first day of the Yom Kippur War,” said Sharon Menahem, Shoham’s cousin, told Ynet News.

“He served in the 401st Brigade in Battalion 52 and was a tank driver. He was captured by the Egyptians during the fighting in Sinai and was held captive for more than 40 days. We all, as a family – and Shoham too – grew up on that story.”

He said that Shoham “always wanted to join his father’s brigade and serve in his dad’s battalion. At first, he was assigned to the 188th Brigade. He spoke to me and told me he wanted to get into the 401st Brigade – and he did. He also served as a tank driver, just like his father.”

“His father worried about him like any parent of a soldier in Gaza, but at the same time he encouraged him, supported him, and was insanely proud of him. Their entire house is decorated with Israeli flags and flags of the 401st Brigade. In November, Shoham was supposed to be discharged from the army."

Shlomo Yakir Shrem was “pure gold,” his close friend, Tal Goren, said. “I had deep conversations with him – this was a person I learned so much from – how to be patient, how to connect with people. He was pure gold, he knew how to respect everyone, always saw the good in people. He had so much light to spread, and now he’ll spread it from the heavens.”

Yuliy Faktor “was a wise, curious, and caring student – a person with a great soul who gave his life for the defense of the homeland. May the memory of this Israeli hero be blessed,” his former school eulogized him.

On Tuesday morning, the IDF announced it would expand its operations in northern Gaza, calling on residents to evacuate large, additional parts of Gaza City and the central camps area.

Shortly after the IDF’s announcement of the three deaths on Monday, two rockets were fired at Israel from the central Gaza Strip. They were intercepted without causing damage.

The three deaths raised the death toll since fighting resumed in March to 43, and since the ground maneuver began in 2023, to 451.

Overall, 893 IDF soldiers have been killed since the start of the war, including during the defensive battles of the first days of the invasion.