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At least 15 Israeli soldiers have been killed during the ground invasion in Gaza since Tuesday as its forces press deeper into the enclave, attacking dozens of targets affiliated with its Hamas terror group, The New York Times reported citing the Israeli military.
The 15 deaths, mostly of infantry soldiers, were the first casualties inside Gaza publicly confirmed by Israel's military since it launched a ground invasion on Friday.
The IDF confirmed the death in battle of two additional fallen soldiers: Staff Sergeant Itay Yehuda, 20, and Staff Sergeant Shay Arvas, 20, bringing the death toll of soldiers killed in the Gaza ground operation so far to 15, Times of Israel reported.
In Israel, the soldiers' names and faces were plastered on the home pages of most news websites. Others were read out live on Israeli television when the military announced their deaths on Wednesday, as per the New York Times.
The Israeli military said it has struck more than 11,000 targets in the Gaza Strip since the horrific attacks by Hamas on October 7 which killed over 1,400 Israeli people and over 200 were taken hostages.
Earlier on Tuesday, Israeli forces took over a Hamas military stronghold in western Jabaliya, a densely packed residential area north of Gaza City, claiming to kill more than 50 terrorists.
Meanwhile, Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant said that the IDF is making immense achievements in its ground operation in the Gaza Strip.
"I am impressed by the activities of our forces," he said in comments during an assessment held near the Gaza border.
"This is a determined, decisive action. There is strong cooperation between ground and air forces."
"There are very important achievements being made in the field -- hitting terrorists of all levels, from fighters in the field to high-ranked ones," Times of Israel quoted him as saying.
The defence minister further said that IDF activity is exposing underground tunnels and forcing the terrorists out.
He adds that there are, 'prices paid on our side, as happens in any battle', a reference to the 15 IDF soldiers killed so far in the ground operation, Times of Israel reported.