(Oct. 9, 2026 / JNS)
An Israeli officer was killed and three other soldiers were lightly wounded when a military Humvee overturned during operational activity in the area of the Litani River in Southern Lebanon on Thursday, the Israel Defense Forces said.
The slain soldier was identified as Capt. Eliav Haim Tzapalamus, 21, of Haifa, a combat officer in the 603rd Combat Engineering Battalion of the 7th Armored Brigade.
The three wounded soldiers were evacuated to a hospital for treatment, and their families were notified.
The IDF has launched an investigation into the circumstances of the accident.
Haifa Mayor Yona Yahav mourned Tzapalamus, describing him as part of “Israel’s generation of heroes.”
“Eliav set out to defend his people and his country, and he will not return,” Yahav said. “He was part of Israel’s generation of heroes, young people with dreams, aspirations and a whole future ahead of them, who shoulder an immense responsibility for the nation’s security and the safety of its citizens.”
Tzapalamus was the son of Hali, an employee of the Haifa Municipality, and Beni.
“Dear Hali, all of us, your colleagues at the Haifa Municipality, are stunned and heartbroken,” Yahav said. “There are no words to comfort a family facing such a terrible loss.”
Tzapalamus’s death brings to 41 the number of Israeli soldiers killed in southern Lebanon since fighting with Hezbollah escalated following the outbreak of the war with Iran on Feb. 28. A Defense Ministry civilian contractor has also been killed.
Israel maintains troops in a security zone in Southern Lebanon as part of efforts to prevent Hezbollah from reestablishing its military infrastructure near the Israeli border.
Under a U.S.-brokered framework reached in June, Hezbollah is to be disarmed, Israeli forces are to gradually withdraw from Southern Lebanon and the Lebanese Armed Forces are to deploy in the area. Implementation of the agreement has largely stalled.