Soldiers from the IDF's Nahal Brigade killed five terrorists who had emerged from tunnels and initially evaded them in eastern Rafah, the military said Tuesday.
The terrorists were killed after a five-hour-long manhunt that began in the early morning hours. The incident occurred near the Yellow Line marking IDF-controlled territory.
When IDF observers and Golani Brigade soldiers initially spotted the terror cell and opened air and ground fire, the suspects managed to escape. Israeli forces carried out a manhunt in the area of Rafah, which ultimately concluded with the deaths of the five terrorists.
The incident occurred while the troops were conducting searches in the area.
Dozens of Hamas terrorists still remain in tunnels in eastern Rafah, trapped behind the Yellow Line.
On Friday, approximately 17 terrorists emerged from the tunnels in the same area in two different locations. After a 24-hour manhunt, in total, 11 were killed, and six were arrested alive after they surrendered, according to the military.
The six arrested terrorists were transferred to Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) for further investigations.
The IDF has been operating in the area to destroy such tunnels over the past month.
In northern Gaza, soldiers killed a terrorist they saw crossing the Yellow Line and approaching troops. There have been several such incidents across Gaza, where terrorists have attempted to breach IDF-controlled Gaza territory.
There have been several instances as well, in which terrorists have emerged from the tunnels and were killed by Israeli forces in the area.
US-brokered ceasefire holding despite incidents
Despite these incidents, the US-brokered ceasefire has managed to hold.
Turkey's spy chief met with his Egyptian counterpart and Qatar's foreign minister in Cairo on Tuesday to discuss transitioning to the second phase of the Gaza ceasefire deal and increasing joint efforts in coordination with the US.
Egypt’s General Intelligence Service Director, Hassan Rashad, was present as well.
"During the meeting, (they) also agreed to continue strengthening coordination and cooperation with the Civil Military Coordination Center (CMCC) to eliminate all obstacles to ensure the continuity of the ceasefire and to prevent further violations," a Turkish source told Reuters, adding that the three officials also discussed countering Israeli violations of the accord.
Yonah Jeremy Bob contributed to this report.