Four IDF soldiers were wounded during activity in the area of the northern border on Sunday night as a result of an explosion. One soldier was severely injured, two were moderately injured, and a fourth was lightly injured. The IDF stated that the source of the explosion was unknown and that the incident was under review. The soldiers were evacuated to a hospital to receive medical treatment. Their families have been notified. Hezbollah claimed responsibility for the explosion, stating: "We planted explosives near the border." Related articles: IDF investigating death of two Gazan detainees Footage from the IDF operations to expand the operational hold 'We're going to Rafah and we'll give it to them' 'Recruit soldiers who have not done reserve duty at all' On Saturday, an IDF reserve soldier was seriously injured after a UAV launched from Lebanon exploded near him. "As a result of the explosive UAV attack in the area of Hanita earlier today (Saturday), an IDF reservist who is a member of the kibbutz security team was severely wounded," the IDF confirmed. "He was evacuated to the hospital to receive medical treatment and his family has been informed."
The exposure of a terrorist tunnel leading from Gaza to an Israeli town “is a reminder that terrorism exists, and can strike at any time,” MK Omer Bar-Lev (Labor) said Sunday. The attack could just as easily have been aimed at any of the other many Israeli communities located in the “Gaza belt” region, he said. The Gaza belt is the several kilometers of Israeli land next to the Hamas-dominated Gaza region; communities in the area have been targeted for terrorist infiltration in the past, and receive little to no warning prior to rocket or mortar shell attacks. Bar-Lev warned against ending IDF security patrols in Israeli towns in the region, as was previously planned. “I ask, again, that the Defense Minister and the IDF cancel that decision in order to give residents of communities near the [Gaza security] fence the maximum protection, and no less important, to increase the sense of security felt by those residents who are on the front lines and who have shown determination in the face of daily threats,” he said. Heads of communities in the Gaza belt region had the same request. They issued a call Sunday morning to keep IDF security operational in Israeli towns in the region. The decision to withdraw military protection from the communities is “a bizarre decision” and “disconnected from reality,” they charged.