JERUSALEM (VINnews) — BDE: The IDF reported on Wednesday that a soldier was killed overnight in a friendly fire incident in the southern Gaza Strip after being mistakenly identified as a threat during operations near Khan Younis.

The soldier was identified as Staff Sgt. Ofri Yafe, 21, from the northern agricultural community of Hayogev. He served in the Paratroopers Brigade.A preliminary investigation found that Yafe was hit by small-arms fire from Israeli troops conducting engineering operations to demolish structures during nighttime activity in eastern Khan Younis, in an area of buffer zone outposts near the border. Paratrooper forces had arrived in the sector about a week earlier.

Yafe is the fifth Israeli service member killed in Gaza since the ceasefire took effect on Oct. 10, 2025. The others were Maj. Yaniv Kula, 2nd Lt. Itai Yavetz, Master Sgt. (res.) Efi (Yona Ephraim) Feldbaum and Sgt. Maj. (res.) Asael Babad.

Since the war began on Oct. 7, 2023, 925 Israeli soldiers have been killed, according to military figures. Overall, 2,013 people have been killed since the start of the war, the military said.

Staff Sergeant Yaffe is survived by his parents, Hadas and Yiftach, his sisters, Noy and Tzuf, and his brother, Itamar. Residents of Hayogev said: “With deep sorrow and a broken heart, we bow our heads following the fall of our beloved community member, Ofri Yaffe. The entire Hayogev community is shocked and grieving this painful loss. We embrace the Yaffe family in their most difficult moments and will stand by them in any way required.”

On October 8, 2023, one day after the massacre near the Gaza border, Staff Sergeant Yaffe wrote on Facebook, attaching his phone number: “My name is Ofri Yaffe. I completed my year of volunteer service at the Ayanot Youth Village a few months ago. Several friends and I are ready to come and help with anything needed, anywhere in the country that is safe to reach.”