JERUSALEM

Two more Israeli soldiers were killed in the Gaza Strip, bringing the military death toll on Tuesday to seven, the army said.

A military statement said a squad commander in the 215th Artillery Regiment’s reconnaissance company and a soldier in the 551st Brigade’s 7008th Battalion were killed in battles in the northern Gaza Strip.

According to Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper, at least 83 soldiers have been killed since Israel expanded its ground offensive in the Gaza Strip on Oct. 27.

The Israeli army said that 408 soldiers have been killed since the outbreak of the Gaza conflict on Oct. 7.

Israel resumed its military offensive on the Palestinian territory on Friday after the end of a weeklong humanitarian pause with the Palestinian group Hamas.

At least 16,248 Palestinians have been killed and more than 43,616 others injured in relentless air and ground attacks on the enclave since Oct. 7 following a cross-border attack by Hamas.

The Israeli death toll in the Hamas attack stood at 1,200, according to official figures.

*Writing by Mohammad Sio