Israel Defence Forces claim they launched operation to destroy Hamas tunnels in Gaza

Engineering troops of the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) launched a large-scale operation to destroy Hamas tunnels in the Gaza Strip, which were already entered by the IDF troops; over 100 tunnels have been destroyed.

Source: The Times of Israel and Walla news site

Details: The IDF says it destroys the tunnels using various types of robots and explosive devices to detonate booby traps set by Hamas, and kill terrorists.

Quote: "Maybe at first they were able to harass us, sting us by firing from tunnel exits, but after we established control of the areas, the engineering operation started. We are going to collapse the entrances and the tunnels on them. It will become a death zone. They made a mistake, they chose to be in a place they cannot escape from. They will die in the tunnels."

Details: It is reported that the troops have already destroyed about 100 tunnels, not counting those that were destroyed as a result of airstrikes.

Yair Golan, a former IDF deputy chief of staff who joined the army on 7 October and takes part in hostilities in Gaza, said in an interview with Army Radio that IDF soldiers "under no circumstances" should and will not enter the tunnels of Hamas terrorists.

Quote from Golan: "You don’t need to go into the tunnels…It would be a grave mistake to enter the tunnels [where Hamas is hiding and waiting − ed.] The wisdom is to find the entrances and seal them, or send in smoke that will cause the enemy to come out or will harm him. Under no circumstances do you fight in the tunnels… where there is no chance that you won’t get hurt. You don’t fight inside the tunnels, you counter the threat of the tunnels."

Responding to remarks that Hamas could remain in its vast network of underground tunnels "forever", Golan said: "Take my word for it. The IDF has the capabilities today to deal effectively with the tunnels. It has all the knowledge and the means."

He added that from the moment the troops find the entrances to the tunnels, "they become a death trap for the enemy," because "the full advantage is with the attacking forces".

Asked if the IDF would have to enter Shifa Hospital to locate the tunnel entrances and kill the Hamas terrorists, Golan said he did not know how the fighting would unfold. He stressed that the fight against Hamas and the release of hostages are two important tasks of the army.

Asked if he would support a deal in which hostages would be released in exchange for the Hamas leadership's safe passage to Iran, Syria or elsewhere, Golan said: "If we can get to a situation where the Hamas leaders sail away and our hostages are freed, that would be almost too good to be true."

He stressed that "nobody knows what is realistic" in terms of any such deal.

"Are we ready to pay a heavy price for the release of the hostages? The answer is yes," said Golan.

Background:

• On 31 October, the IDF announced that it had begun fighting Hamas in the underground tunnels of the Gaza Strip. 
• On 2 November, the IDF announced that ground troops and tanks clashed with Hamas terrorists in the northern Gaza Strip overnight, killing dozens of militants.
• Earlier, Ghazi Hamad, a senior Hamas member, welcomed the large-scale attack on Israel on 7 October, during which civilians were massacred, and promised that the Hamas terrorist group would repeat such attacks many times in the future until it destroys Israel.

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