An Israeli soldier was killed and another seriously wounded when their armored vehicle was struck by an IED explosion during an anti-terror operation Monday in the Nur a-Shams camp near Tulkarem in northwestern Samaria, the IDF said.

The fallen soldier was identified as 22-year-old Yehuda Geto, a resident of Pardes Hana-Karkur. He served as the operational driver of the force. Another soldier from the Commando Brigade sustained serious injuries in the attack.

At the time of the explosion, only the two soldiers were inside an IDF “Panther” vehicle parked on a road that had not been suspected of being rigged with explosives. During similar operations, large IDF engineering vehicles typically remove asphalt from streets suspected of concealing hidden IEDs before Israeli troops advance.

Early Monday morning, IDF troops from the Menashe Brigade launched an anti-terror operation in the camp, known as a hotspot for terrorist activities.

The vehicle was stationary at the time of the attack, which occurred just after most of the soldiers had exited to begin advancing on foot, according to Army Radio. Only the driver and a commander from the Duvdevan Unit remained inside and were hit by the explosion.

Shortly afterward, a firefight with armed terrorists ensued, during which an IDF drone fired a missile at hostiles in the area. The missile did not explode.

Several terrorists then approached the unexploded ordnance and tampered with it, resulting in an explosion that killed a local Palestinian woman. Duvdevan soldiers shot and killed a 15-year-old terrorist who had fired at them.

According to an initial investigation, the explosive charge was homemade and unusually large, consisting of dozens of kilograms of explosives. It had been placed at a shallow depth under the street pavement, causing extensive damage.

Just last week, another Israeli soldier died and 17 were wounded under similar circumstances when multiple IEDs exploded during an IDF operation in Jenin.

Since October 7, the IDF has significantly intensified its counter-terror operations in Judea and Samaria, conducting larger-scale operations than before the war and even resorting to airstrikes, a tactic rarely used in the past.