Snoozing in Gaza, Israeli soldier is left behind

JERUSALEM, July 29, 2007 (Reuters) - An Israeli soldier fell asleep while on a combat mission in the Gaza Strip and got left behind in the territory, the military said on Sunday.

Commanders in the Golani infantry brigade realised the soldier was missing only when a roll call was taken shortly after they crossed back into Israel at the end of a raid against Palestinian militants last week. Troops returned to fetch him.

A military statement said the brigade had launched an investigation into the incident.

Israel's YNet news Web site said the sleeping soldier had failed to respond to an initial roll call while the Golani force was still inside the Gaza Strip but his colleagues, anxious to return home, had answered for him when his name was called.

They scrambled back into the territory to search for him once they realised he was missing and found him some 700 metres (yards) from the border fence, YNet said.

Israel withdrew its forces from the Gaza Strip in 2005 after a 38-year occupation. But it frequently mounts incursions into the territory, saying the raids are necessary to try to curtail Palestinian rocket fire into southern Israel.