Isaac Herzog has described an “unbearably difficult morning” today as “more and more names of the best of our sons” are being added to tombstones.
Explaining how 21 Israeli soldiers died in a single day of combat in Gaza on Monday, he said “intense battles are taking place in an extremely challenging space”.
The fatalities occurred near the Israel-Gaza border when Israeli soldiers were targeted by RPG fire, while a nearby building simultaneously collapsed following a separate explosion, according to Israeli military spokesperson Daniel Hagari.
Israel is facing mounting impatience as it ignores calls to scale back its onslaught.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu facing political pressure and demands from hardline coalition partners, has repeatedly vowed to press ahead with the offensive until Hamas is crushed.
There are reports of intensification of fighting in southern Gaza, with the hundreds of civilian casualties adding to the death toll in the enclave, which local authorities now say tops 25,000.
The Palestine Red Crescent Society said early on Tuesday that its headquarters in Khan Younis had been shelled.
Writing on X, the NGO said that the shelling coincided with “intense gunfire from Israeli drones, resulting in injuries among internally displaced individuals who sought safety on our premises”.
UN agencies and aid groups have sounded the alarm about the growing threat of disease and famine in Gaza, where 1.7 million people are estimated to have been displaced from their homes.
That makes a cessation of fighting ever more urgent, and there will be hope that alongside the pressure from the families, recent troop losses could give added momentum to efforts towards dialling down the conflict.
On Tuesday, the Israeli military reported it lost at least 21 soldiers in one of the deadliest attacks on its troops since the war began three months ago.
