The Israel Defense Force released new information Thursday regarding the deepest Hamas cross-border attack tunnel discovered to date.
Plunging several dozen meters (yards) underground the Israel-Gaza border, the tunnel also extended dozens of yards into Israeli territory. The IDF constructed an elevator to allow troops to descend into the tunnel.
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The IDF was not certain what the purpose of the tunnel was, but one working theory is that it was designed to test Israel's underground sensory barrier or be used for a cross-border raid. Furthermore, the IDF did not speculate on whether this may have been a likely reconnaissance or scouting mission rather than an attempt to abduct either soldiers or civilians.
It was apparently dug recently and was not among the 20 Hamas or Palestinian Islamic Jihad terrorist tunnels the IDF has destroyed in the aftermath of Operative Protective Edge in 2014.
Starting in the Gaza city of Khan Younis, the tunnel was discovered after the underground detection system was activated in conjunction with soldiers in the Gaza Division tasked with identifying the sounds of digging.
The tunnel was buttressed with concrete slabs and because of its depth was fitted with a sophisticated ventilation system.
Israel began its construction of the 55-kilometer (35-mile-long) underground frontier barrier in 2017 and is expected to complete it in March 2021. It was the first such tunnel to be uncovered in more than a year.
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Infiltration attempts are common as many ordinary Gazans prefer arrest at Israel's hands rather than remaining in the Strip, which for many reasons – including Hamas' rule, Israel and Egypt's blockade, the coronavirus pandemic and rampant unemployment – is teetering on the verge of a humanitarian crisis.
Parts of this article were first published by i24NEWS.
