TEHRAN - The Israeli military has announced the death of more soldiers during confrontations with the Palestinian resistance forces in the Gaza Strip.

Over the past 24 hours, the Israeli occupation forces (IOF), as reported by Hebrew media, announced the death of at least five soldiers in the besieged enclave. 

More than a dozen others have sustained injuries, some in critical condition. 

On Sunday, the IOF said a soldier was “killed in combat” amid clashes with the armed wing of Hamas. No further details were revealed. 

This comes on the backdrop of an IOF announcement that four Israeli soldiers had been killed and 12 others injured, four of whom are in critical condition in the Zeitoun district. 

The injured soldiers have been transported to hospital for treatment, according to the IOF and the Israeli Broadcasting Corporation. 

The Israeli military claims the soldiers died following an explosive device being set off by armed groups, but there is no way of independently verifying this claim. 

The news will come as a significant setback for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s cabinet. 

The Zeitoun district in the northern Gaza Strip, just south of Jabalia and on the outskirts of Gaza City, was among the first areas to be indiscriminately bombarded by the IOF. 

It was also among the first regions to be invaded by the IOF. 

Since October 7, the IOF has invaded, withdrawn, and declared victory over the Palestinian resistance in Zeitoun on various occasions. 

On May 15, Israeli forces retreated under fire from the district for the third time since October, following a two-week ground invasion. 

Since then, the IOF has invaded the region again but is still suffering losses, eleven months after the U.S.-backed Israeli genocidal war on Gaza began. 

The Palestinian resistance has published statements underscoring that it is still engaging and inflicting heavy losses on the IOF in northern Gaza. Video footage published on social media on an almost daily basis appears to back up these statements. 

An IOF spokesperson said the troops killed in combat include two major generals and a lieutenant colonel. 

According to the IOF’s tally, 700 soldiers have been killed since October 7, with 337 of them since the start of the IOF’s ground invasions in the enclave on October 27. 

Experts say the casualty rate is much higher. 

Israeli news outlets have announced the death of soldiers in the Gaza Strip under a “permit to publish” clause amid strict censorship by Tel Aviv on its media coverage of the war. 

However, leaked reports indicate at least 10,000 soldiers have been left disabled in the enclave since October last year. 

Other reports suggest the number has surpassed 70,000. 

Despite failing to defeat the Palestinian resistance in Gaza, the Israeli military goes on with its severe punishment of the enclave’s 2.3 million civilians, with children as the main victims. 

On Sunday, the World Health Organization warned that “most children under five in Gaza are spending entire days without eating anything at all. A snapshot survey, looking at food access over three days in May, found that 85% spent at least one day without food”. 

International demands on Tel Aviv to lift the blockade of Gaza to allow the entry of humanitarian aid as well as food and clean water have been rejected by Netanyahu’s government.