EIGHT Israeli soldiers have been killed in a blast in the Gaza Strip as forces continue to push in and around the southern city of Rafah.
The Israeli troops were all killed inside an armoured personnel carrier during an ambush by Hamas fighters, the military said.
The IDF convoy was returning from an overnight offensive on Hamas in which they killed some 50 gunmen when the terror group ambushed the soldiers.
One of the vehicles was hit by a major explosion, killing and wounding the Israeli troops on board.
It was not immediately clear if the bomb was planted under the tank ahead of time or if Hamas fighters placed the explosive device during the surprise attack, the Times of Israel reported.
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It's also being investigated whether explosives stored on the outside of the CEV contributed to the massive blast.
There was no gunfire at the time of the incident and the vehicle had been on the move.
It marks the deadliest incident for the IDF in the Strip since January when 21 soldiers were killed in an explosion.
Reacting to the deaths of eight IDF servicemen, Israeli President Benjamin Netanyahu expressed his condolences.
He called the loss of the forces the "heartbreaking price in our just war of the defence of the homeland" but added that "despite the heavy and staggering cost, we must stick to the goals of the war."
Troops have been advancing in the area for weeks, with shells landing in the coastal area where thousands of displaced Palestinians have taken refuge.
A ceasefire deal between the two sides has been stalled for some time despite growing international pressure to bring the war to an end.
Israel has also struck several areas of Gaza where at least 19 Palestinians were killed as a result.
Four others died in separate attacks in the south, according to medics.
The IDF on Saturday said they uncovered a huge amount of weapons both above ground and hidden inside the tunnel network built by Hamas.
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It claimed militants had on Friday fired five rockets from the humanitarian area in Central Gaza, with two falling in open areas in Israel and three falling short in Gaza.
"This is a further example of the cynical exploitation of humanitarian infrastructure and the civilian population as human shields by terror organisations in the Gaza Strip for their terrorist attacks," the military said.
The Islamic Jihad armed wing, Al-Quds Brigades, said Israeli hostages would only be released after the IDF pulled out from the area.
In a video posted on Telegram, a spokesman for Al-Quds Brigades made the demands to end the war in return for hostages.
Islamic Jihad is a smaller ally of Hamas, which led a rampage in southern Israel on October 7 in which 1,200 people were killed and more than 250 taken hostage, according to Israeli tallies.
Israel says there are still around 100 hostages trapped in Gaza, alongside the bodies of 30 more.
Since a week-long truce in November, which saw a number of hostages released, ceasefire talks have broken down on several occasions.
The terror squad has previously asked for a permanent ceasefire which would see the withdrawal of all Israeli forces from populated areas in Gaza like the besieged city of Rafah.
Meanwhile, Netanyahu refuses to end the war before any last remnants of Hamas are destroyed.
Since the beginning of the war, over 35,000 people — mostly civilians— have been killed in Gaza, according to the UN.