Israel Says It Found the Most Sophisticated “Terror Tunnel” Out of Gaza Strip

The Gaza Strip, blockaded by Israel since 2007, relies on underground passageways to import everything from food, fuel, and weapons to cars and live cattle.

On Friday, however, the Israeli military announced that it had discovered a sophisticated “terror tunnel” out of Gaza that it believed was engineered for exclusively violent means. The military wing of Hamas, who control Gaza, mocked Israel’s claims.

The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) said that this tunnel, which extends hundreds of meters into Israel, is their biggest subterranean discovery yet. Israel’s army found and destroyed three other tunnels into the country in 2013.

“This advanced tunnel was intended to pose a direct link and threat to Israeli territory, and enable Hamas terrorists to reach and harm Israeli civilians,” said IDF Lieutenant Colonel Peter Lerner.

Lerner added that the tunnel resembles a subway passage and that new footprints, a generator, and tools had been found at the scene, suggesting that it had been worked on in the “last few days.”

A Gaza tunnel found by the IDF last October was 18 meters underground and over one mile long, but Lerner said that this new find had many offshoots and was the “the most advanced tunnel that we’ve exposed.” He said that the passageway didn’t reach an Israeli town under the border, but noted that “it wasn’t that far — a quick sprint and you could attack a community.”

“Tunnels such as this are built to assist terrorists in the execution of terror attacks. In the past Gaza terrorists have utilized such tunnels to Israel for infiltration, detonation, and abduction of Israeli citizens,” Lerner added.

Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit was abducted in 2006 by Hamas militants who used a tunnel from Gaza to enter Israel in a cross-border raid. Shalit was held captive for five years.

The Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas, issued a statement on Friday denying Israel's “terror” claims. An al-Qassam spokesman, who was identified only as Abu Obaida, said that the tunnel was not new. He claimed that the tunnel was only exposed after it partially collapsed following recent heavy rain.

“It is an old tunnel that Israel exposed two months ago and jihad fighters worked to rebuild it,” Obaida stated. This could possibly explain the footprints reported by Israel.

“This tunnel was unsuitable for use. This is not a new tunnel, and it was uncovered due to the rainstorm last week. The discovery was not an intelligence achievement, as the enemy tries to promote,” Obaida said.

The investigation into the tunnel is ongoing. The IDF claims that some of the construction remains uncovered and reportedly fears that other parts of the passage could be booby-trapped.