The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) on Sunday revealed it razed down a large Hamas tunnel network beneath the Jabaliya refugee camp near Gaza City. The IDF had found the bodies of five hostages from here earlier in the month.
A video released by the IDF showed the white-tiled bathroom and workroom linked by dark concrete-lined passages. The tunnel network had two levels and an elevator heading down dozens of meters to a large hall and a command centre. The IDF believes this was Hamas's underground command centre in the northern part of Gaza.
The video showed a section of tunnel lined with white tiles and a similarly designed bathroom with a basic shower, toilet, and sink, and a work room with a corner table and bench. One tunnel had a drinking water dispenser and a pile of bullets.
The military said the entire network was spread over an area of about a square kilometre and the branches of the tunnel stretched under a nearby school and hospital. While one branch of the tunnel led directly to the home of the former commander of Hamas Ahmed Ghandour, weapons and infrastructure to manufacture weapons were also found in the tunnel.
The IDF which completed the scan of the area destroyed the tunnel several days ago. "The IDF completed the dismantling of Hamas’s subterranean command complex in northern Gaza," the statement said.
The IDF also found another tunnel in the southern part of Gaza, which it said was hundreds of meters long and included command rooms, storage, and large resting areas with electricity, communication lines, and water.
Two days that, the IDF announced that it had discovered and blown up another large network under Gaza City’s upscale Rimal neighborhood. It said shafts led directly from Hamas leaders' homes and offices to a complex series of tunnels, including some with blast doors and stores of food.
Another tunnel was uncovered near the Erez border crossing in far north Gaza, which stretched at least four kilometres (2.5 miles) and was wide enough for a car to drive through.