An Israeli soldier was killed during an abduction attempt by terrorists who also attempted to snatch his body in the southern Gaza Strip, the Israel Defense Forces announced, EDnews reports, citing The Times of Israel.
He was later named as Master Sgt. (res.) Abraham Azulay, 25, a heavy engineering operator in the Southern Command’s combat engineering unit, from the West Bank settlement of Yitzhar.
Azulay got married just three months before he was killed, and is survived by his wife, Ruth, and his parents and siblings.
According to an ongoing IDF probe, several Hamas gunmen emerged from a tunnel and attacked Israeli troops in southern Gaza’s Khan Younis.
During the attack, gunmen attempted to abduct Azulay, who had been operating an excavator.
He “struggled with them and the terrorists shot and killed him,” said the military.
The gunmen then tried to make off with Azulay’s body, but other Israeli forces guarding the area opened fire on the operatives, thwarting the attempt, the army said.