The IDF has confirmed that the 710th Battalion of the 769th “Hiram” Regional Brigade encountered explosive devices left by Hezbollah on Saturday. The Times of Israel reports that Sgt. First Class (res.) Lidor Porat, 31, was killed in the incident, and nine other soldiers were injured. This comes as Israel marks Yom HaZikaron, honoring those who have died defending the Holy Land, while a fragile ceasefire remains in place.
During the battalion’s operations in IDF-controlled territory in southern Lebanon, an engineering vehicle drove over a bomb that had been planted by Hezbollah, according to an initial military probe.
Soldiers stationed in the area to secure the heavy machinery were hit by the blast, leading to Porat’s death and the injury of nine others — one seriously, four moderately, and four lightly.
Immediately after the blast, the IDF struck several targets in the area.
The wounded soldiers were airlifted to a hospital, and their families were notified, the army added.
Further details surrounding the incident were under investigation by the military.
Family members described Porat as a deeply religious man with “love of the Torah and love of exceptional Torah scholars,” the Ynet outlet reported.
The Israel-Lebanon ceasefire took effect at midnight on Friday. Later that same day, another IDF reservist was killed by an explosive device. He has been identified as Warrant Officer Barak Kalfon, 48, of the 226th Reserve Paratroopers Brigade’s 7056th Battalion. He was scanning buildings for Hezbollah weapons when the device detonated.
Both Porat and Kalfon were laid to rest on Sunday. On this solemn day of Yom HaZikaron, The Fellowship and its supporters pause to remember these brave individuals who gave their lives protecting the Jewish homeland. We pray for their families and for shalom, peace.
