TEHRAN- Funerals are being held for more than a dozen Israeli soldiers who have died since Saturday as a result of battles in the Gaza Strip.

 The latest deaths have raised further pressure on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. 

On Monday, Israeli demonstrators blocked the main highway connecting Tel Aviv to occupied al-Quds (Jerusalem) in protest against the Netanyahu government. 

Eight Israeli soldiers who were inside a heavily fortified Namer armored personnel carrier were all killed on Saturday. 

A probe by the Israeli occupation forces (IOF) says the advanced $3 million combat vehicle was traveling as part of a convoy to Palestinian buildings captured by the Israeli military when it burst into flames. 

According to the IOF, it was not immediately clear if a bomb was planted before the convoy arrived or Palestinian fighters approached the Israeli Namer with an explosive device, placing it directly on the armored personnel carrier. 

According to Israeli media, which has been placed under tight censorship over war casualties, the attack led to the single deadliest incident for the IOF in months. 

The al-Qassam brigades, the armed wing of Hamas, claimed responsibility for the operation. 

In a statement, it said that its fighters carried out a complex ambush against Israeli vehicles penetrating the area of the Saudi neighborhood in Tell al-Sultan, west of the city of Rafah. 

"Thousands of soldiers in the Israeli army return from Gaza suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder." According to the resistance group, an Israeli D9 military bulldozer was targeted by an al-Yassin 105 shell, causing it to catch fire and resulting in casualties among its crew. 

The al-Qassam brigades says immediately upon the arrival of the rescue force, a Namer armored personnel carrier was targeted with an al-Yassin 105 shell, which led to its full destruction and the killing of 11 Israeli troops. 

Separately, the Israeli military announced on Sunday that two soldiers were killed and two others sustained injuries during battles in northern Gaza. 

It is another reflection of the presence of Hamas and its ability to carry on fighting in the northern part of the enclave. 

This is despite the region being the first target of the ferocious Israeli bombardment and ground invasion. 

The IOF has repeatedly bombarded and invaded northern Gaza since the start of the war in October. 

Another soldier was killed in the southern city of Rafah on Sunday, according to the IOF. 

A twelfth soldier also succumbed to his wounds during fierce combat with the Palestinian resistance forces five days earlier. 

Meanwhile, Israeli news platforms, under the condition of "allowed to publish" reported the suicide of another soldier after returning from combat in the Gaza Strip. 

Israeli news platforms clarified on Monday that the soldier shot himself to death, just 24 hours after being discharged on leave from Gaza. 

The Israeli newspaper Haaretz revealed that more than 10 officers and soldiers have committed suicide since October 7, 2023. 

The newspaper highlighted another case of a soldier's suicide in the Israeli army reserves last week. 

The IOF ground invasion of Gaza and intense confrontations waged by the Palestinian resistance are widely believed to have caused widespread psychological crises among Israeli soldiers. 

The regime's news outlet Jerusalem Post reported on June 15 about an epidemic of post-traumatic stress disorders affecting thousands of occupation soldiers as a result of their participation in the war on Gaza. 

It has also been reported by the Israeli organization Nefesh B'Nefesh that "thousands of soldiers in the Israeli army return from Gaza suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder." 

The organization added that "more than 10,000 reserve soldiers have sought mental health services". 

Other reports have cited army figures as saying 30,000 soldiers have been treated for mental health issues since the war began. 

Amid the latest casualties, the death toll of Israeli soldiers since the start of the war on Gaza on October 7 has risen to more than 660. This includes over 311 soldiers killed since the beginning of the ground invasion. 

Furthermore, 3,617 soldiers have been wounded, according to the IOF figures. An Israeli report citing hospital data revealed that more than 20,000 have been disabled. 

A Palestinian affairs analyst for Israeli Channel 12, Ohad Hemo, said on Sunday that Hamas has successfully rebuilt its presence in the Gaza Strip. 

He emphasized that Israeli expectations over the invasion of Rafah and the ground operations there are misleading the public. 

Hemo detailed how Hamas has re-established its presence in many areas and has regained a level of control, presence, and armament in central Gaza, Deir al-Balah, and the central refugee camps. 

"In this sense, those who pinned their hopes on the battle in Rafah have misled the public, suggesting that it would change the entire picture," Hemo added. 

Almost nine months since the genocidal Israeli war on Gaza, growing public and political delusion over Netanyahu's alleged success in the enclave has been reflected by the Israeli premier's dissolution of the war cabinet created after October 7.