"During the incident in which Captain Yehonatan (Joni) Keren, Staff Sergeant Aviv Gilboa, Staff Sergeant Nisim Meytal and Staff Sergeant Naor Haimov fell, an officer in the Multidimensional Unit (888) was severely injured," the army said in a statement, adding the wounded officer was evacuated to hospital.

According to the army, 367 Israeli soldiers have been killed in the military campaign in Gaza since the start of the ground operation in the Palestinian territory on 27 October last year.

Israel launched its offensive in Gaza after Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, resulting in the deaths of 1,206 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of Israeli official figures, which include hostages who died or were killed in captivity.

At least 43,061 people, a majority of them civilians, have been killed in the Israeli offensive on Gaza, according to figures from the Hamas-ruled territory's health ministry which the UN considers reliable.