IDF Sergeant Major Ayal Uriel Bianco, 30 years old, killed in Lebanon
His death brings to 13 the number of Israeli soldiers killed in Lebanon since the start of Operation Roaring Lion in Iran, and to 937 since October 7, 2023.
Reservist Sergeant Major Eyal Uriel Bianco, 30, from Katzrin, was killed in an operational accident in southern Lebanon, the IDF announced Tuesday. According to initial findings, the military vehicle carrying him and several other soldiers overturned during a patrol.
The incident left additional soldiers wounded: one reservist was moderately injured, while two others sustained light injuries and were evacuated to hospital for treatment.
Bianco’s death brings the number of Israeli soldiers killed in Lebanon since the launch of Operation Roaring Lion to 13, and the overall toll since October 7, 2023, to 937. The IDF continues to operate in southern Lebanon, conducting sweeps in sensitive areas.
The announcement follows a series of recent casualties. Last week, Staff Sergeant Touvel Yosef Lifshitz, a Golani Brigade soldier from Beit She’an, was killed during combat in the village of A-Taybeh, near the Israeli border community of Misgav Am. Hezbollah operatives opened fire at close range on troops from the brigade’s 13th Battalion, killing Lifshitz and wounding several others, including one soldier seriously. Israeli forces responded with gunfire and airstrikes, with the military saying several militants were killed.
Earlier in the week, Sergeant Major Guy Ludar of the elite Maglan unit was killed in a separate friendly fire incident in southern Lebanon. An officer was seriously wounded in that event and evacuated to Rambam Hospital in Haifa.