Two Israeli Soldiers Killed, 24 Wounded in Drone Strike by Iran-Backed Militia in Iraq
Two Israeli soldiers were killed, and 24 others wounded, in a drone attack launched by an Iran-backed militia in Iraq early Thursday morning, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) confirmed on Friday.
The fallen soldiers were identified as Sgt. Daniel Aviv Haim Sofer, 19, a signals officer cadet from Ashkelon, and Cpl. Tal Dror, 19, an IT specialist from Jerusalem. Both served with the Golani Brigade’s 13th Battalion.
According to an IDF investigation, two explosive-laden drones were launched from Iraq. While one was intercepted by Israeli air defenses, the second drone struck an army base in the northern Golan Heights just minutes later. The attack resulted in the deaths of Sofer and Dror, as well as injuries to 24 others, including two seriously.
The probe revealed that although sirens sounded in several Golan communities when the first drone entered Israeli airspace, the second drone went undetected, and no alert was activated for soldiers on the base to take cover. The IDF is investigating the failure to sound alarms in time.
The Iran-backed group Islamic Resistance in Iraq claimed responsibility for the attack, stating it had targeted three locations in northern Israel. The incident marks the first time the group has caused serious casualties in Israel, amid a recent surge in UAV attacks by Iranian proxies in the region, including Hezbollah in Lebanon.
In a separate event on Friday, the IDF announced it had shot down another drone that entered Israeli airspace from “the east,” a term used to describe attacks by the same Iraq-based group. This follows a series of drone strikes on Israel, most of which have been intercepted or caused minimal damage.
Last week, a drone launched from Iraq struck the Eilat port, causing damage and injuring two people lightly. The ongoing drone strikes come as Israel continues its conflict with Hamas in Gaza and escalates its operations against Hezbollah in Lebanon.
