Lying underneath the streets of Gaza and less than 500 yards from what was the busy Erez crossing on the border of Israel is what is being called the largest Hamas tunnel found in Gaza yet. Israeli officials announced they discovered the large tunnel on Sunday, Dec. 17.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said the tunnel is part of a system called an “underground terror city.”
The miles-long Hamas tunnel is large enough for vehicles to drive through it. According to the IDF, the tunnel — which ends near an Israeli military base — was designed for a large-scale attack, but Israeli defenses did not find the tunnel until this weekend.
For Hamas, attacking the people of Israel continues to take priority over supporting the people of Gaza.
IDF spokesperson Lt. Col. Richard Hecht
Giving reporters an exclusive look inside the tunnel, the IDF said Hamas may have used part of it to facilitate supplies, personnel and vehicles in its Oct. 7 terror attack on Israel. However, the Israeli military believes the portion leading to the border and a military base was intended to be used in a later attack.
The concrete and reinforced steel tunnel spans 2 1⁄2 miles straight into a spiderweb system of tunnels splintering off underneath Gazan schools, hospitals and other sensitive sites.
A military spokesman said that the tunnel likely took years, cost millions to build and has been used by Hamas during the war.
“Hamas has persistently and deliberately invested enormous amounts of money and resources into terrorist tunnels that serve only one purpose — attacking the State of Israel and its residents,” said IDF spokesperson Lt. Col. Richard Hecht. “This strategic attack tunnel network, large enough to drive vehicles through, was spearheaded by Muhammad Sinwar and intentionally dug near a crossing dedicated to the movement of Gazans into Israel for work and medical care. For Hamas, attacking the people of Israel continues to take priority over supporting the people of Gaza.”
The chief IDF spokesman, Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari, added that Israeli soldiers will push through the tunnels to uproot the terror group and save hostages believed to be somewhere in the network of tunnels.
“We will hunt them even if we need to go down to the tunnels,” Hagari said. “We also need to do it with attention to the rescue of our hostages and the understanding that maybe some of them are in the tunnels.”
The discovery of the tunnel comes as pressure for another cease-fire mounts, along with criticism of Israel’s use of force and near-constant bombardment of Gaza. It also comes as the IDF announced its soldiers accidentally killed three hostages trying to identify themselves on Friday, Dec. 15.
More than 100 hostages are still believed to be held by Hamas in Gaza.
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