IDF announces soldier killed in sniper attack in Rafah
The troops were hit by a double attack in the Rafah area, east of the Yellow Line under Israeli control; Hamas snipers fired first, followed by an anti-tank missile against an engineering vehicle
The IDF has cleared the death of Master Sergeant (Res.) Yona Efraim Feldbaum for publication on Wednesday.
Feldbaum fell in the southern Gaza Strip, in the Israeli-controlled area east of the Yellow Line, following the Hamas breach and the sniper fire directed at the forces.
Feldbaum, 37, from Zayit Raanan in Binyamin, was a heavy engineering equipment operator in the Gaza Division.
The incident began Tuesday afternoon in Rafah, parts of which are within the Yellow Line, in a neighborhood where Hamas operatives are still present.
A group of terrorists came out and tried to attack the forces, firing machine guns at a bulldozer in which Feldbaum was present. He was hit and killed immediately.
Following the incident, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu convened an emergency meeting on Tuesday to discuss Israel's response. Meanwhile, an Israeli official said that "this cannot go unanswered."
After the discussion, Netanyahu instructed to begin powerful strikes in the Strip in response to the violations by the terror organization.
Some of the additional options have been discussed in recent days with the U.S. One of those on the table is the expansion of the area under IDF control beyond the Yellow Line.
IDF forces are operating in the Rafah area to dismantle remaining terrorist infrastructure east of the yellow line, in territory under IDF operational control. the troops are operating to dismantled the underground tunnel route where terrorists are present in the area.