Israeli military reports troops killed by own fire, equipment failures

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Israeli media
5 Jul 2025 09:53
9 Shares

Israeli media have reported that 31 soldiers were killed by "friendly fire" during the ongoing war on Gaza, accounting for a significant portion of operational deaths.

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Israeli soldiers work on tanks at a staging area near the border with the Gaza Strip, in southern occupied Palestine, Tuesday, July 1, 2025 (AP)

At least 31 Israeli soldiers have been killed by "friendly fire" since "Israel" launched its war on Gaza, Israeli Army Radio reported on Friday.

The broadcaster stated that 72 soldiers have been killed in total due to “operational incidents” since "Israel" began its ground invasion of Gaza on October 27, 2023. These account for roughly 16% of the 440 Israeli soldiers killed in ground operations.

According to the report, the breakdown includes 31 killed by "friendly fire", 23 due to ammunition-related incidents, seven run over by armored personnel carriers, and six in unspecified shooting cases.

Since "Israel" resumed its war on Gaza on March 18, two of the 32 soldiers killed during that period reportedly died in operational incidents, the report noted.

In addition, five soldiers have been killed in workplace accidents, including falls and the mishandling of engineering tools. One such incident occurred on Thursday night, though no further details were disclosed.

Israeli military data indicate that a total of 882 soldiers have been killed and 6,032 injured since the beginning of the war on October 7, 2023.

Israeli soldiers speak out on army negligence

In late June, Anadolu reported that Israeli occupation soldiers have accused their army’s leadership of gross negligence following the killing of seven combat engineers in a deadly explosion in southern Gaza.

The Israeli soldiers, from the Israeli army’s 605th Engineering Battalion, spoke to the public broadcaster KAN, highlighting what they described as “systemic neglect and failure” in their combat equipment.

They reported that their personal weapons, medium machine guns, and Puma armored personnel carriers often malfunction and fail to offer sufficient protection.

Combat gear failures, systemic issues

According to the soldiers, these recurring equipment failures contributed to the fatal incident in Khan Younis, where an improvised explosive device struck their armored vehicle.

The Israeli occupation military confirmed the killings but did not respond to the soldiers’ accusations. KAN characterized the incident as “one of the worst negligence incidents since the war began.”