The Israeli Army announced this Monday (26) the discovery of a 10-kilometer-long underground tunnel in the Gaza Strip, the center of a network that connected the north and south of the enclave.
“It is a 10 kilometer long terrorist tunnel that passes under a hospital and a university,” the Israeli Army said in a statement, accompanied by photos and videos of the discovery in Gaza City.
The 162nd Division located a network of tunnels connecting the north and south of the Gaza Strip and achieved “operational control” of the mouths of the underpass before destroying much of the network.
The network of tunnels starts from the Turkish-Palestinian Friendship Hospital, located in the south of Gaza City, borders the campus of the University of Israel and reaches the neighborhood of Zaytun, further southeast of the capital.
“Last week, we carried out extensive operational activity around the Turkish hospital, where we found an 18 meter deep tunnel and two exits,” said the head of operations of the Nahal Brigade, about the discovery that opened the way for the network of tunnels.
In Zaytun, Israeli troops have resumed their military activity with intense fighting against Hamas terrorists since last week, after withdrawing from the area in January.
“This network of tunnels is used by the militia to move between different brigades in the Gaza Strip, including the Central Brigade and the Gaza City Brigade, including the Nuseirat, Sabra and Zaytun battalions,” detailed the Israeli Army.
Inside the tunnels, troops located rooms including bathrooms, stores of weapons and combat equipment, as well as abandoned bodies of militiamen, he added.
“Hamas has spent millions of dollars building an underground network of terrorist tunnels used for its military activities under schools, hospitals and homes throughout the Gaza Strip,” the Israeli army said, adding that it had found tunnels under hospitals like the Shifa and United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) schools.
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