IDF foils renovation of Hamas terror tunnel

After destroying two Hamas tunnels Saturday night, the IDF foiled the terror group’s efforts to renovate another tunnel leading into Israel.

By: Yona Schnitzer, TPS

The IDF has thwarted an attempt by Hamas to renovate a terror tunnel that the army had previously destroyed leading from Gaza into Israel in the early hours of Sunday morning, an IDF spokesman said Sunday.

As part of its effort to eradicate the terror tunnels coming out of Gaza, the IDF’s Engineering Corps, in an operation lead by the Southern Command, carried out the demolition. A further attack took place on Hamas’ underground infrastructure in the central Gaza Strip in response to several recent attacks on patrols along the border fence using improvised explosive devices, the army said.

“Systematically, while making use of quality intelligence and groundbreaking technology, Israel is destroying tunnel after tunnel. Whoever thought they would succeed in attacking us [from] underground, has run into an iron barrier,” Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman said in a statement, “Hamas has invested billions in the tunnels project, and is now drowning in sand. I advise that Hamas invest its money in the wellbeing of the people of Gaza; by the end of the year, its tunnel project will have been eradicated.”

“Last night the IDF destroyed two terrorist tunnels. Our policy is to take determined action against any attempt to attack us and to systematically eliminate the infrastructure of terrorist tunnels and thus we will continue,” said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday morning, adding that “the time has come for the international community to realize that the assistance funds to Gaza are being buried underground.”

Since Operation Protective Edge in 2014, the IDF has focused efforts on destroying attack tunnels crossing into Israel and has uncovered and destroyed several such tunnels in recent months as a result of works on a new underground border barrier and technological means.

“A string of operational successes in the underground arena results from technological capabilities and systematic intelligence work. We shall continue our efforts to locate and destroy tunnels,” the IDF said.

“The IDF operated out of [Israeli] territory in order to protect its citizens and its sovereignty. This operation was carried out with no intention of escalating the situation, however, the IDF is prepared for any scenario,” the IDF statement added.