An Israel Defense Forces soldier and a Border Police officer were killed on Friday in the Shejaiya neighborhood of Gaza City, Israeli authorities announced on Saturday.
The soldier was identified as Capt. Ido Voloch, 21, from Jerusalem, a platoon commander in the 46th Battalion of the 401st “Iron Trails” Brigade. The Border Police officer was identified as Sgt. Netta Yitzhak Kahana, an undercover operative in the elite Yamas unit of the Israel Police’s Southern District.
According to the IDF, Voloch was killed during an operation to rescue wounded soldiers under heavy fire. The Israel Police reported that Kahana fell in the same battle.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issued a statement following the announcement.
“My wife Sara and I send our deepest condolences to the families of Yamas fighter Staff Sergeant Netta Yitzhak Kahana, of blessed memory, and IDF officer Captain Ido Voloch, of blessed memory, who fell in battle in Gaza for the security of the State of Israel and its citizens,” he wrote.
“We are all praying for the recovery of the wounded soldiers. The entire people of Israel mourn together with the dear families and salute Netta and Ido, of blessed memory, for their supreme heroism. May their memory be blessed and forever held in our hearts.”
On Thursday, Master Sgt. (res.) Asaf Cafri, 26, a tank driver in the IDF 14th Reserve Armored Brigade’s 79th Battalion, was killed in Gaza. In the same incident in the northern Strip, a fellow reservist of the 79th Battalion and an officer in the Yahalom special forces engineering unit sustained serious wounds.
Eight hundred and fifty Israeli soldiers have been killed since Hamas’s Oct. 7, 2023, terrorist invasion of southern Israel, including 412 during the ground campaign in the Strip. Additionally, 67 Israel Police officers have been killed in the line of duty during the same period, as reported by the Israel Police.
