An IDF soldier was killed in a friendly fire incident during a nighttime operation in Khan Yunis, Gaza, between Tuesday and Wednesday, the Israel Defense Forces informed. The soldier, St.-Sgt. Ofri Yafe, 21, was critically injured and later died despite medical treatment. The army has launched an investigation and informed his family, Jerusalem Post reported.
Israeli media reported that Yafe was hit by fire from fellow troops during a paratrooper operation in the area.
Who was Ofri Yafe?
St.-Sgt. Ofri Yafe served as a fighter in the Paratroopers Reconnaissance Unit. He was 21 years old and from Kibbutz Megiddo in northern Israel. He studied at Megiddo High School and was described as a young man with strong values and a deep sense of duty, as per the Jerusalem Post.
He is survived by his parents and three younger brothers.
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Family and community in mourning
"We are shocked by the tragedy and cannot digest the loss of Ofri, our beloved son. This is incomprehensible," the Yafe family wrote.
Kibbutz Megiddo remembered him as "a lively young man, surrounded by friends, and deeply loved."
"Ofri grew up in Kibbutz Megiddo and studied at Megiddo High School, surrounded by a loving family and friends. He was a young man of values, raised to give and to show courage, with his whole future ahead of him. Our hearts are broken," said Head of the Megiddo Regional Council, Gil Lin, as quoted by JP.
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"Our hearts are broken with the fall of Ofri, a son of our valley. A brave young man, full of life and values, who chose to serve and contribute to the state out of a sense of mission and love of the land," said Jezreel Valley council head Shlomit Shihor Reichman.
"Today, the Jezreel Valley embraces the Yafe family and the entire HaYogev community. The pain is unbearable, and we stand beside the family in their difficult hour. The entire Jezreel Valley is united in mourning and sorrow."
