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Underground war between Israel, Hamas heats up

The IDF exposed an attack tunnel dug by Hamas, which reached Israeli territory.
A drill is seen on the Israeli side of the Southern Gaza border where, according to the Israeli army, a tunnel was discovered, Israel, April 18, 2016. REUTERS/Amir Cohen - RTX2AIZN

Another battle in the “tunnel brain war” being waged in the recent year between Hamas and Israel ended April 18, when Israel removed the gag order from the great drama that had been unfolding on the Gaza Strip border over the last two weeks. During the recent weekend, the entire area was placed under alert. The Palestinians reported heightened activity of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) along the border of the Strip and an enormous amount of heavy engineering equipment operating in the zone. The IDF concentrated large forces in the region, local residents were ordered to remain alert and rumors spread throughout the length and breadth of the zone, from the Gaza Strip to Israel and back.

On April 18 before noon, the gag order was lifted. News reports were released that the IDF had located, uncovered and neutralized a cross-border Hamas attack tunnel dozen of meters long into Israeli territory in the southern Gaza Strip sector. This was the first tunnel uncovered by Israel since the conclusion of the Protective Edge campaign in the summer of 2014.

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