The Israel Defense Forces have started flooding the Hamas terror tunnel network in Gaza with Mediterranean Sea water, according to a report Tuesday by The Wall Street Journal, quoting US officials briefed on the matter.
The move is just one of several methods Israel is using to try to destroy the tunnels, which has proved to be a deadly weapon in the Hamas arsenal aimed at Israel, but the strategy is still being evaluated by the IDF, the sources said.
WSJ: Israel May Flood Hamas Tunnels to Drive the Terrorists Out
The senior command of the terrorist organization, including Gaza’s Hamas chief Yahya Sinwar and the group’s military commander, Mohammed Deif, are believed to be hiding somewhere in the tunnel complex under Gaza’s second-largest city, Khan Younis.
Recent footage from tunnels discovered by IDF soldiers beneath and around Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City shows they function as hideouts but also contain conference rooms, sleeping areas, bathrooms, micro-kitchens, offices for senior Hamas officials and weapons storage areas, as well as facilities for holding hostages.
WATCH: IDF Exposes Major ‘Gaza Metro’ Tunnel Hub Under Shifa Hospital
Iran’s Lebanese proxy, Hezbollah, has employed a similar defense beneath the towns and villages in southern Lebanon, across Israel’s northern border.
Both terrorist groups are committed to the annihilation of the State of Israel and its Jewish residents.
It is believed that at least some of the 240 hostages abducted by Hamas during the group’s October 7th invasion of southern Israel are still being held captive in the subterranean labyrinth.
At least 140 of the hostages are still being held by Hamas in Gaza, including 28 women, a baby and a four year old, and 117 men. Ten of the hostages are age 75 or older.
A temporary ceasefire last month during which Israel released three incarcerated Palestinian Authority terrorists for each hostage freed by the terror group led to the release of 105 captives. Hamas violated the ceasefire, ending the agreement before the exchange was completed.
