Horrifying moment IDF reservist is injured after setting off a booby-trap bomb while trying to kick down a Palestinian flag in West Bank

Shocking footage captured the moment an off-duty Israeli army reservist was left injured after attempting to kick down a booby-trapped Palestinian flag.

The man, reportedly aged 25 and named Israel Levy, was caught on camera trying to remove the flag near the West Bank settlement of Kochav Hashahar.

Footage that has been shared on X, formerly Twitter, showed the man storming through an overgrown field as he marched toward a solitary Palestinian flag that had been erected in the middle of the grassland.

As he stomps over a log and staggers up the small hill, he can be seen approaching the green, white, red, and black flag, unaware of the apparent trap lying in wait.

The man proceeds to kick the pole with force, seemingly setting off an explosion which sends him flying backwards as an orange glow is emitted from the site.

An IDF reservist can be seen in footage storming towards a Palestinian flag erected near the West Bank settlement of Kochav Hashahar

As the man, reportedly age 25 and named Israel Levy, goes to kick down the flag, he appears to set off a booby trap 

The off-duty soldier disappears into the thick cloud of smoke and reportedly only suffered minor injuries 

A woman filmed the scenes from the passenger seat of a car while others inside the vehicle can be heard gasping and yelling

A thick cloud of smoke engulfs the man who disappears from sight as debris is thrown out across the field from the force of the blast.

It appears a woman filmed the scene from the passenger seat of a car, but she remains inside the vehicle for the duration of the video as she films the smoking heap in the middle of the field.

Other passengers inside the vehicle can be heard gasping and yelling as there appeared to be no sign of the man after he was thrown to the floor. 

After a few moments pass, the man cannot be seen fleeing the explosion in the footage, but according to local reports, the Rescuers Without Borders emergency services said he was treated at the scene for minor injuries and declined being taken to hospital.

It was initially reported that the man was an Israeli resident of Binyamin, but the IDF later confirmed the Israeli was an IDF soldier in reserve who was on holiday. 

The IDF are reportedly investigating the incident, and stated troops were searching for suspects in the area, according to The Jerusalem Post.

The West Bank has continued to witness a rise in violence during the seven-month-long war in the Gaza Strip, with Palestinians and Israelis continuing to clash along the occupied settlements.

On Sunday, the IDF revealed their troops killed two Palestinians who the military claimed attacked a checkpoint with a knife and a gun near the southern West Bank town of Hebron.

The assailants, who were not immediately identified, had pulled out a knife on the troops near the Beit Einun Junction at around 7am, with the second suspect firing at the soldiers.

Both teen suspects, who were confirmed to be 18 and 19 years old, were killed in retaliatory shooting, but no IDF soldiers were injured following the attack, according to Israeli military.

The ferocious gunfight took place just hours after another bloody incident in the West Bank which saw a woman attempting to stab an IDF soldier at a checkpoint in the northside.

Some Palestinians return to their homes after Israeli forces withdrawal from the Nuseirat refugee camp in Deir al-Balah, Gaza on April 21, 2024

Smoke rises following Israeli strikes, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip April 21, 2024

Palestinian medics gather at the site of an Israeli strike in the central Gaza Strip on April 22, 2024 

The female suspect was killed after the IDF soldier opened fire, the Palestinian health ministry said.

It comes after the IDF began extensive raids in the Palestinian Nur Shams refugee camp along the West Bank on Thursday.

The Palestinian Red Crescent rescue service said it had recovered 14 bodies from the Israeli raid, including  three militants from the Islamic Jihad group and a 15-year-old boy. 

The military said it killed 14 militants in the camp and arrested eight suspects. Ten Israeli soldiers and one border police officer were wounded.

Earlier this month, a female IDF soldier was also shot and wounded in the West Bank near Nabi Ilyas by a Palestinian gunmen, with Hamas later claiming responsibility for the attack. 

At least 469 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli soldiers and settlers in the West Bank since the start of the war in Gaza mon October 7, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry. 

Most have been killed during Israeli military raids, which often trigger gunbattles, or in violent protests.

The bloody war in Gaza was sparked by an unprecedented raid into southern Israel in which Hamas and other militants killed around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducted around 250 hostages.

Israel says militants are still holding around 100 hostages and the remains of more than 30 others.   

Thousands of Israelis have taken to the streets to call for new elections to replace Netanyahu and a deal with Hamas to release the hostages. 

Netanyahu has vowed to continue the war until Hamas is destroyed and all the hostages are returned.

The war has killed at least 34,097 Palestinians and wounded another 76,980, according to the Gaza Health Ministry. 

The ministry does not differentiate between combatants and civilians in its count. 

It says the real toll is likely higher as many bodies are stuck beneath the rubble or in areas that medics cannot reach.

Israel blames Hamas for civilian casualties because the militants fight in dense, residential neighborhoods. 

The military rarely comments on individual strikes, which often kill women and children. 

The military says it has killed over 13,000 Hamas fighters, without providing evidence.