TEHRAN – The spokesperson for the Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) announced the death of a tank company commander in northern Gaza City.

According to the IOF spokesman, a preliminary investigation shows the officer died after succumbing to severe injuries he sustained in an ambush carried out by the armed wing of Hamas in Gaza City.

Channel 12 confirmed, under the IOF’s “permitted for publication” policy, the death of Major Shahar Natanel Bouzaglo, 27, after a tank was struck by a projectile.

The channel noted that Bouzaglo was the commander of the “Volcano” company in the IOF’s Battalion 77 of the 7th Armored Brigade, explaining that he sustained critical injuries as a result of an RPG missile fired at the tank he was in, in Gaza City.

This comes alongside reports from Israeli media about two “security incidents” that have taken place in Gaza City, in which the al-Qassam Brigades ambushed the IOF, killing another occupation soldier. 

Israeli media have also acknowledged that a combat officer from the Shaked battalion of the Givati Brigade was seriously wounded during a close-quarters clash with Palestinian resistance fighters in Gaza City.

The Al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas, announced they targeted an IOF Merkava tank with a high-explosive landmine near the al-Bara’a mosque, south of the Sabra neighborhood in Gaza City. 

Israeli media also reported two “security incidents” in Gaza City in which al-Qassam fighters ambushed an IOF unit.

There has been no word about any IOF injuries amid the regime’s strict “permission to publish” policy and the sensitive nature of the Gaza City invasion. 

The Israeli cabinet approved the plans to invade over a month ago, despite reports of strong disapproval by the IOF’s Chief of the General Staff, Eyal Zamir, over risks to Israeli soldiers. 

Since the plan to invade Gaza City was approved, the IOF has faced significant difficulties in trying to invade the city via the western Zeitoun neighborhood. 

The armed wing of Hamas had warned the regime that Gaza City would be a “graveyard” for occupying forces. 
  
With the announcement of the latest deaths, the number of IOF fatalities whose names have been cleared for publication rises to at least 911 since October 2023, according to Israeli media.

The occupation regime is widely believed to be censoring the real number of IOF fatalities during its genocidal campaign in the besieged Palestinian territory. 

Multiple investigative reports indicate the true death toll is much higher than what is being officially announced with the genocidal war approaching two years.