Sergei Marchenko, a family friend of Staff sergeant Danilo Mocanu, who was killed when a building in the Gaza Strip collapsed as a result of an explosive device, paid tribute to him in an interview on Wednesday with Ynet.

"Danny talked about Gaza. He said it was scary there, but that we must fight for our country," he said. "He's just a 20-year-old kid. He hasn't seen the world, he hasn't seen anything yet."

Marchenko added that "he was the only son, and he convinced his father to approve him being a combat soldier. He was a good boy, a real angel. An angel boy."

He also said that he is survived by parents and two older siblings: "Stop putting soldiers into buildings in Gaza. I'm a combat soldier myself. There are tanks, there are planes. No family should have to go through this."

He also criticized the Knesset members and said: "We have 120 clowns. Taking a risk on other children".

Danilo was part of a force that operated inside a four-story building in the eastern Khan Yunis area. The building was booby-trapped, and after the soldiers entered the building, the explosive device was detonated and the building collapsed.

As a result, Danilo was killed and another soldier was slightly injured. The IDF is investigating how the terrorists activated the explosive device. Rescue forces cleared the rubble at the scene for many hours.

Since the beginning of the war, 858 soldiers have been killed in battle.