Writing on X on Sunday, Sabo Amos, who works as a surgeon in Israel’s public healthcare system, said he had volunteered to take part in “eliminations” after his battalion had killed “dozens of terrorists” the previous day.

Amos said he had requested to take part in operations “within the framework of preventative medicine”, but said another doctor had suggested his involvement was a matter of “public health”.

“On second thought, he’s right. After all, we’re talking about eliminating cockroaches and other loathsome insects,” Amos wrote in the now deleted post.

Later on Sunday, he posted an image which he said showed Israeli soldiers participating in an afternoon Jewish prayer service in a mosque in northern Gaza.