BICOM

Five Israeli soldiers were wounded, one seriously, following an overnight incident in which they were struck by mortar fire while attempting to destroy a major tunnel built by Hamas to infiltrate Israel.

The 1.7 kilometre long tunnel was uncovered by the IDF last month, originating in a home in Khan Younis. Hamas admitted to constructing the tunnel with the intention of launching an attack to kidnap Israelis. According to the Walla news site, the soldiers were one hundred metres inside the Gaza Strip attempting to blow up the tunnel near the Kissufim crossing when they were struck. All were evacuated to a hospital in Beer Sheva with one in serious condition, another moderately wounded while the others sustained light injuries. IDF spokesman Peter Lerner said, “This mission was imperative due to the potential to utilize the terror tunnel for future attacks against Israeli civilians.”

Responding to the attack, the IDF fired a shell at the source of fire near Khan Younis, which according to Palestinian sources killed one gunman and wounded another. Hamas said the dead man was a member of its Izz ad-Din al-Qassam armed brigade. A heavy exchange of fire is reported to have followed; there were also reports Israel’s Air Force carried out a strike against another tunnel in the southern Gaza Strip, in which several were wounded.

Earlier this week, two rockets were fired from the Gaza Strip at the Ashkelon region in southern Israel. The Iron Dome anti-missile defence system intercepted one while the other landed in an open area. Israel’s Air Force responded by striking two rocket launching sites in the northern Gaza Strip. This week’s incidents follow a period of relative calm in the area since Operation Pillar of Defence almost a year ago, during which Israel sought to stop an increased rate of rocket fire from Gaza on Israel.