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An Israeli soldier was killed and five others wounded during an IDF raid in the Jenin refugee camp, the military said Thursday, marking the first fatality in Israel's week-long counterterrorism crackdown across the West Bank, condemned Operation Iron Wall.
The fallen soldier, Staff Sgt. Liam Hazi, 20, from Rosh HaAyin, was a combat fighter in the Haruv Reconnaissance Battalion. The IDF said four soldiers sustained mild to moderate injuries, while one remains in serious condition.
A preliminary IDF investigation revealed that Haruv forces entered a building in the refugee camp for routine searches when terrorists hiding inside one of the rooms ambushed them, opening fire at close range. Staff Sgt. Hazi was killed in the firefight, while the attackers managed to escape.
Later in the day, an IDF combat helicopter targeted a building in the camp where the terrorists were believed to be hiding, but initial assessments suggest they were no longer inside.
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"We extend our deepest condolences to the family and stand by them in these difficult hours," said IDF spokesperson Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari. "We remain resolute in our fight against terrorism across all theaters, including the West Bank. Even tonight, we remember those who fell in the battles of October 7 and the heavy toll paid by IDF soldiers throughout this war."
The IDF and Shin Bet announced that an airstrike Wednesday night in the Palestinian village of Tamun, part of the broader security operation in the northern West Bank, eliminated approximately 10 terrorists.
Among those killed were Omar Basharat and Montaser Bani Odeh, identified as key operatives behind the explosive device attack that killed Sergeant First Class (res.) Eviatar Ben Yehuda last week. Three other Israeli soldiers were injured in the blast.
The two were also involved in additional shooting and bomb attacks, the IDF said. The strike targeted an armed terrorist cell in Tamun, south of Jenin, as Israel intensifies its operations against terrorist networks in the West Bank.