BUILDING COLLAPSE IN GAZA: IDF names Sgt. Major Alexander Anosov as 2nd casualty

The Israel Defense Forces has identified Master Sergeant (res.) Alexander Anosov, 26, as one of the soldiers killed in yesterday's building collapse in southern Gaza. Anosov, who served as a squad commander in Engineering Battalion 7107 of the Nahal Brigade, was from Modi'in-Maccabim-Re'ut.

The incident occurred around 5:00 PM yesterday at the Shabura refugee camp in Rafah, where Anosov and three other soldiers were inside a building that suddenly collapsed. While two soldiers were quickly rescued with moderate injuries and evacuated by helicopter, Anosov and Moshiko Maksim Rozenwald became trapped in the rubble.

Home Front Command rescue units worked through the night in a desperate 12-hour operation to reach the trapped soldiers. The rescue effort continued until early morning hours, when both soldiers were finally extracted without signs of life.

The IDF says the building was already unstable due to age and had been further weakened by frequent movement of tanks and armored personnel carriers in the area. While many buildings in Rafah show damage from combat operations, military sources indicate this particular structure had not been previously targeted in airstrikes.