An IDF tank on maneuvers. Photo: Michael Shvadron via Wikimedia Commons

JNS.org – A combat soldier from the 188th “Barak” Armored Brigade was killed early Saturday in a tank accident on a mission along the Israel-Sinai border.

Sgt. Eliyahu Drori, 20, from Beit Shemesh, was killed when the tank he was driving – as part of an operation to stop smugglers trying to sabotage security infrastructure – went down a steep incline, causing one of the tank shells to catch fire inside the tank. The tank’s fire detection system extinguished the fire, saving the lives of the three additional soldiers inside the tank who were injured. Investigations are underway to determine if Drori died as a result of the fire or because of the fire suppression materials.

His funeral is scheduled for Sunday at 5 pm at the Mount Herzl military cemetery in Jerusalem.

Drori, a religious soldier in the Hesder army service and religious studies program, was eulogized by his yeshiva Yeshivat Sha’alvim as possessing “the joy of life and a heart of gold,” with the organization stating that “His will to all of us is to continue advancing more and more in the work of one’s self and in building up the Torah for the people and the country.”