Click to see full-size image. (The Israeli Defense Forces)
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said on December 17 that it had uncovered the largest-ever attack tunnel of the Hamas Movement in the northern Gaza Strip.
The tunnel, of which around four kilometers were uncovered by the IDF, goes down some 50 meters underground in some areas.
Despite its large size, the tunnel does not enter Israeli territory. One of the shafts was found just 400 meters away from the Erez Crossing with Israel.
The IDF said that over the last few weeks, the Combat Engineering Corps’ elite Yahalom unit and the Gaza Division’s Northern Brigade used “advanced intelligence and technological means” to uncover the “strategic” tunnel network, scan it and clear it of any potential threats.
It noted the tunnel’s large size allowed for the movement of vehicles, and “many weapons” belonging to Hamas were found inside.
“Its width indicates that it was intended to have been used for vehicle-borne raids against civilians in the Gaza border communities,” said the commander of the Gaza Division’s Northern Brigade, Colonel Haim Cohen, in a video statement.
In an earlier statement, the IDF said troops from the 7th Armored Brigade raided the offices of the commander of Hamas’s Khan Younis battalion and the vacation homes of several senior Hamas commanders, including the movement’s leader in Gaza, Yahya Sinwar.
The commander of the 7th Armored Brigade, Colonel Elad Tzuri, announced his forces are battling Hamas in the city of Khan Younis in southern Gaza. He also said that the brigade reached the main square in Bani Suheila, on the outskirts of the city.
During the operations, the brigade’s troops killed “many terrorists,” including some by tank shelling, the IDF said, adding that some 30 tunnel shafts were uncovered and dozens of anti-tank missile launch sites and observation posts were struck.
In addition, weapons of Hamas fighters were seized by Israeli troops, along with intelligence materials, according to the IDF.
“We found weapons, tunnels inside vacation homes of senior Hamas officials,” Tzuri said. “We see a lot of tunnel shafts here, still encountering the enemy but gaining operational control of the area.”
Along with the offices of the Khan Younis battalion commander and holiday homes of senior Hamas commanders, the IDF said the troops also raided an outpost belonging to the Deir al-Balah battalion, seizing intelligence materials.
In another raid in the city, Israeli troops seized weapons and equipment at the home of a member of Hamas’s elite Nukhba forces.
The IDF announced in a separate statement that around 200 targets of Hamas in northern and southern Gaza were struck overnight.
Meanwhile, Hamas’ military wing, Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, and the al-Quds Brigades, the military wing of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, reported heavy clashes with Israeli troops in northern, central and southern Gaza. Several military vehicles of the IDF were reportedly hit. Video footage showing the destruction of a Merkava 4 main battle tank was released by al-Qassam.
The death toll from Israeli strikes and ground operations in Gaza has reportedly neared 19,000. Despite this, the Israeli leadership appears to be determined to go on with the war.
