IDF unearths underground network connecting north and south of Gaza Strip

Forces of Division 162, along with the Nahal Brigade's combat team and engineering forces, unearthed an underground tunnel network that connects the north and south of the Gaza Strip, the military announced on Monday.

The underground routes run for some 10 km and pass under a hospital and a university.

After gaining operational control of the network, IDF soldiers examined it and destroyed large portions of it. 

The underground routes connected the Turkish hospital bordering the camps in the center of the Strip to the Israa  University building in the south of Gaza City, reaching as far as the area of Zeitoun.

An underground communication network 

According to the military, these underground tunnels were utilized for inter-divisional communication between the different terror divisions in the Strip. The routes connected the Central Brigade to the Gaza City Brigade and the various battalions.

Within the tunnels, troops found rooms, storage areas, and toilets, along with weapons, military equipment, and a tunnel shaft network. In addition, soldiers found the bodies of terrorists left in the tunnel. 

Nahal Brigade Commander, Colonel Yair Zuckerman, said, "In recent weeks, together with engineering forces, we have carried out significant activities to locate a network of underground tunnels that runs from the north to the south of the Strip, with the understanding that part of the dismemberment of the Strip is both an on-ground effort and underground."