In a key operation in southern Gaza, Israeli forces successfully destroyed a central Hamas underground network in Rafah, leveraging actionable intelligence obtained from detained Hamas terrorists. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF), in conjunction with the Shin Bet security agency, announced the operation as part of ongoing efforts to neutralize the persistent threat from Iranian-backed Hamas operatives entrenched in the Gaza Strip.
The operation began after two Hamas terrorists surrendered to members of the 188th Armored Brigade’s combat team in the Rafah sector. These individuals, apprehended without resistance, were transferred for interrogation by Shin Bet officers. During questioning, the terrorists provided vital intelligence identifying the location of a significant subterranean infrastructure in Rafah’s Shabora neighborhood—a known Hamas stronghold utilized for planning and launching attacks against Israel.
Based on this intelligence, the 188th Brigade, in cooperation with the elite Yahalom combat engineering unit, initiated a targeted incursion. The operation uncovered a sophisticated tunnel network approximately one kilometer in length and 25 meters deep. Israeli forces documented rooms for squad habitation, kitchen and sanitary facilities, reinforced blast doors, and multiple concealed shafts designed for rapid entry and exit. Following comprehensive reconnaissance and documentation, IDF engineers destroyed the complex to prevent further use by Hamas for operational and organizational purposes.
Subsequent sweeps of the area revealed additional sites used by Hamas for storing weapons and military equipment, all of which were also destroyed. The IDF released photographic evidence from the main entrance to the tunnel, underscoring the extensive resources expended by Hamas to construct such elaborate underground facilities—resources diverted from civilian use for terror activities.
This latest operation is part of Israel’s ongoing military campaign targeting the tunnel networks that have long formed the backbone of Hamas’ asymmetric warfare strategy. These structures enable Hamas to move operatives and weapons undetected, organize attacks, and evade detection by Israeli and international monitors. The sophisticated tunnel system—concealed beneath civilian infrastructure—also exposes Gaza’s residents to significant risk, given Hamas’ repeated use of human shields and tactics that blend terror operations into the urban landscape.
The discovery and destruction of the Rafah underground hub highlight the depth of intelligence cooperation and operational readiness of Israeli forces since the October 7, 2023 massacre, when Hamas terrorists committed the deadliest antisemitic attack since the Holocaust, resulting in the systematic murder, mutilation, and abduction of innocent Israeli civilians. This massacre triggered Israel’s Iron Swords War, shaping military strategy to focus on systematically degrading Hamas’ operational capacity and infrastructure in Gaza.
The Iranian regime, Hamas’ primary sponsor, continues to orchestrate and equip its proxies in the region, including Hezbollah in Lebanon, the Houthis in Yemen, and various militia groups in Syria and Iraq. Each uses similar tactics—tunnel construction, weapons smuggling, and hybrid warfare—designed to undermine Israel’s security and provoke wider conflict in the Middle East.
Israeli authorities emphasized that the operation in Rafah was conducted with a firm commitment to international law and minimizing risk to noncombatants. IDF units ensured that residents were cleared from immediate danger zones and strictly focused strikes on verified military targets to avoid unnecessary civilian harm—a doctrine consistently demonstrated by Israel in contrast to Hamas’ deliberate endangerment of Gaza’s population.
The operation has broader implications beyond the immediate tactical victory. By removing another major piece of Hamas’ infrastructure, Israel has further eroded the group’s capacity for command, control, and sustained conflict. The willingness of terrorists to surrender and provide intelligence may also indicate increasing demoralization within Hamas ranks driven by sustained military pressure and precision targeting.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz have reiterated Israel’s determination to continue operations until all strategic threats in Gaza are neutralized. Military spokespeople affirmed the destruction of the Rafah tunnel complex as evidence of the effectiveness of Israel’s intelligence-led approach, combining field operations, interrogations, and technological superiority to disassemble the network of terror constructed by Hamas and its Iranian backers.
International observers and analysts note that Israel’s systematic exposure and destruction of these terror tunnels provide essential proof of the terror apparatus built beneath Gaza’s civilian areas. These findings repeatedly underscore Hamas’ deliberate militarization of humanitarian infrastructure—theft of aid, construction materials, and even international donations diverted to warfare at the expense of Gazans themselves.
Israel’s latest operation affirms its security doctrine: protecting citizens by preemptively dismantling terror infrastructure, holding Iranian-backed proxies accountable for their actions, and upholding moral, legal, and humanitarian principles even amidst difficult combat environments. As the Iron Swords War continues, Israel’s military and intelligence services remain vigilant, determined, and transparent in their mission to dismantle the terror threat posed by Hamas and to ensure long-term peace and security for Israelis and, ultimately, the region.
