Second Lt. Eitan Avner Ben Itzhak, Maj. Omri Chai Ben Moshe, Second Lt. Ron Arieli and Second Lt. Eran Shelem were killed Thursday in the Gaza Strip after the Humvee they were traveling in struck an explosive device in the Jnina neighborhood of Rafah. A cadet from the Dekel Battalion at the IDF Officers School was seriously wounded in the same incident.
The soldiers from the Dekel Battalion of Bahad 1, the IDF Officers School, were killed at around 9:15 a.m. local time during an operation in the Jnina neighborhood carried out by the 261st Brigade under the Gaza Division. According to the initial probe, a D9 armored bulldozer cleared the route, followed by two Humvees. When the D9 came to a halt, the Humvees also stopped. One of the vehicles apparently shifted slightly to the side, triggering the blast.
It is not yet clear whether the vehicle's movement set off the device or if it was detonated remotely by a terrorist. The explosion killed four soldiers, left one in serious condition, and wounded two others moderately.
Eitan Avner Ben Itzhak
Ben Yitzhak, 22, from Samaria, married his wife Atara just three months ago. He is survived by his wife, parents and siblings.
Samaria Regional Council head Yossi Dagan, a relative, mourned him: Eitan grew up in a Zionist, Torah-loving family, deeply committed to settling the Land of Israel. Naturally, he and his wife made their home in Har Bracha. At their wedding they dedicated the celebration to the memory of fallen comrades. The heart breaks for the youth, for the family that should have blossomed here in Samaria but now will not.
Ron Arieli
Second Lt. Arieli, 20, from Hadera, was a cadet in the Dekel Battalion at the Officers School and served as a combat soldier in the Golani Brigade.
Omri Chai Ben Moshe
Maj. Ben Moshe, 26, from Tzafria, was a company commander in the Dekel Battalion at the Officers School and served as a company commander in the Paratroopers Brigade.
The Tzafria community said it mourns the loss of Maj. Omri-Chai, the son of Oren and Revital Suzi Ben Moshe, and shares in the family's grief. His funeral will take place at midnight at Mount Herzl.
Eran Shelem
Second Lt. Shalem, 23, from Kibbutz Ramat Yohanan, was a cadet in the Dekel Battalion at the Officers School and served in Sayeret Matkal, the IDF's elite special forces unit.
