28th July, 2014
The Israeli army said five of its soldiers have been killed in and around the wartorn Gaza Strip on Monday.
The number included four soldiers killed by a mortar shell in southern Israel who media reports had initially identified as civilians.
“Over the course of the day, 5 IDF soldiers were killed,” a statement said, indicating that four of them “were killed along the border of the Gaza Strip as a result of mortar fire”.
Their deaths raised to 48 the total number of Israeli soldiers killed since July 17 when troops began the ground phase of a major military operation against Gaza militants.
The overall operation began on July 8, and has so far killed a total of 48 soldiers and three civilians — two Israelis and a Thai farm worker.