A tunnel in Khan Yunis where hostages were held was discovered by the 98th Paratroopers division along with special forces units after finding intelligence information in the house of a Hamas terrorist, Israeli media outlets reported Saturday.
The tunnel was 830 meters long and 20 meters deep. During the advance in the tunnel, the soldiers encountered a number of terrorists, which they subsequently eliminated. When the forces reached the tunnel, there were no hostages in it; they had been previously moved to another location.
The tunnel was located in the heart of a civilian area in Khan Yunis, and its entrance was from the house of a Hamas terrorist. According to Israeli intelligence estimates, millions of shekels were invested in its construction.
IDF Spokesman R.-Adm. Daniel Hagari published photos of the tunnel Saturday evening. The tunnel had security doors and explosives designed to protect the terrorists.
Evidence of hostages held in the tunnel
“About 20 hostages were held at different times in difficult conditions, without fresh air,” Hagari said. “There were no hostages in the tunnel, but they had stayed there in the past. After about a meter of walking into the 20-meter-deep tunnel, Israeli forces found a space where, according to their testimony, the hostages stayed most of the time.
“In this space, we found evidence of the hostages having stayed there, including paintings of Emilia Aloni along with other hostages [Aloni was released in late November]. We also located prison cells with toilets and a mattress, and they were closed with bars, where 20 hostages were held at different times in harsh conditions without daylight in dense air with little oxygen and terrible humidity that makes it difficult to breathe.”
“Some of them were released about 50 days ago, and some of them are still being held in Gaza and possibly in even more difficult conditions, among them very old people who need medicine and help,” he said. “[On Friday], before we destroyed the tunnel, we documented the place and brought in journalists from international media so that the world remembers this, and it must not be forgotten. Hamas commits crimes against humanity, children, the elderly, the sick, [who] are kept in inhumane conditions.”
“The return of the hostages is of the utmost importance, and we are working in all ways to bring them home,” Hagari said. “Our activity combines technology and intelligence. We do not attack places where we know and even suspect that hostages are there. At the same time as the fighting underground, our forces continue to fight above ground in Khan Yunis, continuing to dismantle the military framework of Hamas.”