1 more Israeli soldier killed in northern Gaza fighting

The Israeli army on Friday announced that one more soldier was killed in the fighting in the northern Gaza Strip.

In a military statement, the army identified the slain soldier as Ben Avishaym, 20, of the army's Paratroopers Brigade.

The soldier's death brings the number of Israeli soldiers killed since the start of the Israeli ground operation in Gaza on Oct. 27 to 280, while the army's total deaths since the launch of the Israeli onslaught against Gaza on Oct. 7 jumps to 628.

Israel has waged a brutal offensive on the Gaza Strip since a cross-border attack by Hamas on Oct. 7 last year, which Tel Aviv says killed nearly 1,200 people.

Over 35,300 Palestinians have since been killed in Gaza, the vast majority of whom have been women and children, and over 79,200 others injured, according to Palestinian health authorities.

Over seven months into the Israeli war, vast swathes of Gaza lay in ruins, pushing 85% of the enclave's population into internal displacement amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water, and medicine, according to the UN.

Israel stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice. An interim ruling in January said it is "plausible" that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza and ordered Tel Aviv to stop such acts and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.