'He loved his family and friends and was loved by everyone...' - British man serving in Israeli army killed in Hamas attack

A 20-year-old British man serving in the Israeli army has been killed in an attack by Hamas militants, his family have said. Nathanel Young was serving with the Israeli Defence Services when he was killed on the Gaza border on Saturday.

His death comes after 26-year-old Jake Marlow, who went to the same London school as Mr Young, was reported missing while providing security at a music festival near Kibbutz Re’im, close to the Gaza border. Gaby Shalev, from London, posted on Facebook: “We’re heartbroken to share that our little brother Nathanel Young was tragically killed on the Gaza Border yesterday.”

Mr Young’s brother, Eliot Young, said in a statement released to the BBC: “Nathanel was full of life and the life of the party. He loved his family and friends and was loved by everyone.

“He loved music and was a talented DJ, DJing both on base and at Benji’s House, the lone-soldier house where he was living.”

The former pupil at JFS Jewish school in Kenton, north London, had been living in the Bayit Shel Benji lone-soldier house in Raanana, according to the Jewish News.

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The Foreign Office has been approached for confirmation of his death. The Israeli Embassy in London confirmed that London-born Mr Marlowe, who is reported to have moved to Israel two years ago was missing but it had not been confirmed that he had been kidnapped.

Israeli media have reported that at least 600 people were killed, including 26 soldiers, during the attacks, prompting PM Benjamin Netanyahu to say they were at “war” as the country launched a military response.