Evening Telegraph (First Edition)
Gaza tunnel raises pre-war questions
THE Israeli military claims to have discovered a large tunnel shaft in Gaza close to what was once a busy crossing into Israel, raising new questions about how its surveillance missed such conspicuous preparations by Hamas for the militants’ deadly October 7 assault.
The entry way to the tunnel is just a few hundred metres from the heavily fortified Erez crossing and a nearby Israeli military base.
The military said it stretches for more than 2.5 miles, links up with a sprawling tunnel network across Gaza and is wide enough for cars to pass through.
The army said yesterday that the tunnel facilitated the transit of vehicles, militants, and supplies in preparation for the October 7 attack.
That day, militants used a rocketpropelled grenade to break past the portion of wall close to the Erez crossing and stormed the base, killing at least three soldiers and kidnapping some back to Gaza, the army said.
It was one of several places along the border wall where militants easily blew past Israel’s security defences, entered Israeli territory, killed 1,200 people and took about 240 others hostage. The unprecedented attack triggered a devastating war that has raged for more than 10 weeks and claimed more than 18,000 lives in the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip, according to Palestinian health officials.
Israel says destruction of Hamas’ tunnel network is a major objective and that much of the underground network runs beneath schools, hospitals and residential areas.
Israel’s military, intelligence and political officials have come under heavy criticism.
Major Nir Dinar, a military spokesman, said the entrance, a circular cement opening leading to a cavernous passageway, was located under a garage.