The IDF announced on Thursday that it discovered a new Gazan terror tunnel near Ein HaShlosha, east of Khan Yunis. The tunnel was of a similar scale to the Gaza terror tunnel that was discovered 5 months ago.

“The exposure of this tunnel was based on intelligence, and boots on the ground in the vicinity of the Gaza security fence,” IDF Spokesman Lt. Col. Peter Lerner, said, ”Our operational assumption is that Hamas and other terror organizations continue to tunnel and prepare points of attack against Israel and its civilians. This advanced tunnel was intended to pose a direct link and threat to Israeli territory, and enable Hamas terrorists to reach and harm Israeli civilians. Tunnels such as this are built to assist terrorists in the execution of terror attacks. In the past Gaza terrorists have utilized such tunnels to Israel for infiltration, detonation and abduction of Israeli citizens.”

Hamas’s Iz al-Din al-Qasam called a news conference and denied that this was a new tunnel, but rather it an old tunnel that was being rebuilt by their terrorists.

Hamas said the tunnel collapsed from the massive rainstorm, which exposed it to the IDF.

The IDF blew the tunnel up in a controlled explosion.

Israel continues to allow in construction material into Gaza which is used to build these terror tunnels.

Five IDF soldiers were injured last night at the start of the clash with Gaza.

A Golani unit was in the process of destroying the terror tunnel discovered on October 7 that led to the inside of Israeli Kibbutz Ein HaShlosha, when they were injured in an explosion. It is not yet clear if the explosion was from an explosive device or mortar fire.

Reportedly, the soldiers were 100 meters inside Gaza, working on destroying the part of the terror tunnel on the Gaza side of the fence.

The soldiers were evacuated to Soroka hospital in Be’er Sheva by helicopter. At least one was brought in, in serious condition, one in moderate, and the rest with lighter injuries.

The soldier who was seriously injured is Achiyah Klein (Achiyah ben Nira) of Kfar Etzion. Klein is an officer in the Yahalam combat engineering unit.

The IDF responded with tank fire, helicopter fire, and reportedly navy fire at Khan Yunis in Gaza.

Four Gazan terrorists were killed in the IDF response.

Recently, the IDF began reducing the forces placed within the Gaza border communities, saying that the situation is now safer along the Gaza border. On Thursday evening the IDF pulled out their last soldier stationed within the communities in Sha’ar HaNegev.

The Mossad gave an assessment this week, that as US pressured talks progress with the Palestinian Authority, Hamas will escalate their terror activities against Israel.

An astounding 20% of Hamas’s annual budget goes into building terror tunnels, according to an IDF estimation, which is based on numbers published by Hamas in Gaza.

With an annual budget of $700 million, it’s estimated that $100 million goes directly towards building terror tunnels into Israel and the Sinai, said a report in Makor Rishon.

The IDF estimates there are many more terror tunnels leading into Israel, besides the four that were recently found.

It is unknown how much more of their budget then goes into acquiring and building missiles and explosives.

Hamas’s Finance Minister complained that Hamas has lost $460 million since June, as a result of Egypt blowing up 90% of Hamas’s tunnels in the Sinai.

Hamas says they need their terror tunnels to kidnap Israelis, to help free terrorists captured by Israel who were trying to kill Israelis.

Just imagine if they had instead put that money towards new schools, medical centers, or social programs to improve their country.

The Gaza terror tunnel uncovered last week was built using an estimated 500 tons of concrete and cement, including 24,000 concrete slabs that Israel permitted into Gaza.

The tunnel took 2 years to build, and apparently wasn’t yet completed. It started in Absan al-Zarir, east of Khan Yunis in Gaza, and had exits within the fence of Kibbutz Ein HaShlosha in a wheat field.

The tunnel’s length was approximately a mile long, and was located around 18 meters underground.

The Gazans laid electrical and cable wire along the length of the tunnel.

The Gaza terror tunnel uncovered last week, was built with cement supplied by Israel, according to Reshet Bet.

The tunnel was built 18 meters underground using 500 tons of cement and concrete. It was dug over a 2 year period. It’s the third such tunnel uncovered this year.

In the past, as Hamas was using cement and steel to build reinforced bunkers and terror tunnels, in 2007 Israel restricted the flow of these materials primarily to humanitarian projects generally overseen or requested by international humanitarian organizations, often using European Union funding.

Following EU, UN, and international pressure, as well as official requests by the Palestinian Authority, Israel eased some of the restrictions on cement and iron imports.

But Hamas has apparently been diverting the cement and steel from various projects to build their latest mile and a half long terror tunnel which reached into Kibbutz Ein HaShlosha.

500 tons of cement and concrete is approximately 27 truckloads.

Whether the international organizations knew about the diversion is something that should be investigated.

An anonymous security source said that Raed al Atar, the head of Hamas’s military wing was responsible for this particular terror tunnel. Defense Minister Yaalon temporarily halted the transfer of building materials into Gaza this weekend.

In September, Amir Oren, spokesman for the radical leftwing Israeli NGO Gisha, complained to AFP about the amount of cement Israel was letting in. He said, “It doesn’t make up for the amount which came through the tunnels to Gaza in the first half of the year when they were in regular operation.”

Draw your own conclusions.

The IDF discovered a 1.5 mile long terror tunnel that led from Gaza to Kibbutz Ein Hashlosha. The tunnel was discovered on Wednesday, but  the IDF censor only permitted publication of the find on Sunday.

The tunnel was a complex structure branching out in multiple directions,with multiple entry and egress points. It was laden with explosives and other surprises.

It is clear to the IDF that this tunnel was designed for kidnappings and a major terror attack.

The IDF has uncovered several tunnels leading from Gaza to nearby Jewish communities, over the past few years.

Recently, the IDF has begun a plan to reduce the military presence along the Gaza border as well as take away the armored vehicles belonging to the local town security units, based on, apparently incorrect assessments, that the threat level from Gaza has diminished.

A Gazan Arab was killed a few weeks ago as he tried to infiltrate into Israel across the fence.

After the fall of the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt, Hamas leader Khaled Mashal has been seeking out new partners to help support his Gaza based Islamic dictatorship and its ongoing terror activities against Israel and Egypt.

The military regime in Egypt has had almost enough of Hamas’s support for terror in the Sinai, and last week contemplated a direct military strike on Gaza. Epypt has been destroying Gaza’s terror tunnels in an attempt to stop the attacks against Egyptians in the Sinai.

Hamas leader Mashal met with Turkish PM Erdogan in Anakara this week to ensure and solidify Turkey’s support for Hamas.

Next week, Mashaal will be flying to Iran, for the first time in two years.

Iran’s financial support of Hamas has been dwindling over the past few years, and Mashal wants to get it back.

In order to help win Iranian support, Hamas is repositioning itself in favor of the Assad regime.

Mashal’s message this week has been for a third Initfada, and for everyone to point their guns and rifles at their united enemy – Israel.

Hamas has joined the Syrian rebels and has introduced its tunnel smuggling expertise while training rebels and fighting with them against its former ally Syrian President Bashar Assad, The London Times reported Friday.

Quoting anonymous Western sources, the newspaper stated, “The Qassam Brigades have been training units very close to Damascus. These are specialists. They are really good.”

Hamas reportedly is helping rebels build tunnels for weapons to be used on an assault on Damascus, Assad’s stronghold.

Syria hosts half a million Arabs classified by the United Nations as “Palestinian refugees,” whose support for Hamas would bolster its strength against its rival Fatah movement, headed by Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas.

Hamas denied the report and explained that one of its members who was killed outside Damascus last summer had left the terrorist organization.

Hamas’ London-based official Osama Hamdan stated, “We don’t interfere in the internal problems of Syria. Our members there are normal civilians, Syrian Palestinians, who live with their families there.”

However, it is “common knowledge” that Hamas agents are fighting with he rebels in refugee camps, according to a source in Lebanon’s Ain al-Hilweh Palestinian refugee camp

Sources also told the London newspaper that Qatar, which has donated a quarter of a billion dollars to Hamas in Gaza and has promised more, may have persuaded Hamas to join the civil war.

De facto Gaza Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh said in Cairo in February, almost at the same time the Emir of Qatar paid an historic visit to Gaza, “I salute all the nations of the Arab Spring and I salute the heroic people of Syria who are striving for freedom, democracy and reform.”