IDF spokesman: Hamas ‘not safe’ in tunnels under Gaza

IDF Spokesman Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari says Hamas is “not safe” in its tunnels under the Gaza Strip, following the release of footage showing terror operatives killed by troops in a tunnel.

“In the Hamas tunnels, the troops planted explosives… we identified the terrorists with a camera, and killed several terrorists in this incident,” Hagari says in a press conference.

“Hamas terrorists, especially its senior members, choose to hide underground. This is the Hamas method of operating, hiding while using the civilians above them as human shields,” he says.

Hagari says the IDF has “new combat means” to kill Hamas operatives in its tunnels.

“We will enter, plant explosives in the areas where the terrorists are, and we will wait for the right moment to kill them underground. The terrorists will not be safe underground,” he adds.

Asked about repeated reports in foreign media about the IDF allegedly pumping seawater into Hamas’s tunnels, Hagari says: “We work in a variety of ways” to destroy the tunnels and get the operatives to come out.