MOSCOW, 10 Feb. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) reported , which allegedly discovered a tunnel of the Palestinian Hamas movement under the central headquarters of the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) in the Gaza Strip.
The IDF, in a joint statement published on its Telegram channel with the Israeli Security Authority (ISA), said that over the past two weeks, army and department forces have carried out “targeted raids” on “terrorist targets” in the northern and central parts of the Gaza Strip . It is noted that the military personnel operated in the areas of Al-Shati and Tel al-Hawa in the north of the enclave, as a result of which about 120 fighters of the Palestinian Hamas movement were eliminated, and 20 objects of “terrorist infrastructure” were destroyed. Acting on intelligence, «forces arrived at the tunnel shaft near the UNRWA school.»
“The mine led to an underground terrorist tunnel that served as an important Hamas military intelligence facility and ran underneath the building serving as the main headquarters of UNRWA in the Gaza Strip,” the statement said.
It is noted that the length of the tunnel was 700 meters, the depth was 18 meters, the tunnel was allegedly equipped with explosion-proof doors. «During the operation, a wide range of intelligence information was captured. The newly acquired intelligence will allow troops to conduct operations against other Hamas targets,» the army added.
According to the statement, during the operation, forces discovered electrical infrastructure in the tunnel connected to UNRWA headquarters, under which there was an underground tunnel, which «indicates that UNRWA facilities were supplying electricity to the tunnel.»
“Following this, and based on preliminary intelligence from the Israeli Security Authority (ISA), the forces conducted a targeted raid on the UNRWA central headquarters, where the offices of various humanitarian and international organizations are located. A large number of weapons, including rifles, ammunition, grenades, were found in the premises of the building and explosives,» the statement said.
The army added that intelligence and documents allegedly found in the offices of UNRWA employees «confirmed that these offices were in fact also used by Hamas terrorists.»
UNRWA previously received information from Israel about the alleged involvement of some of its employees in the Palestinian Hamas attack on that country on October 7, 2023, and decided to terminate their contracts. The number of these officers and the extent of their involvement in the attack were not reported. UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini said agency employees suspected of involvement in the attack on Israel would face trial if found guilty. However, Finland, Great Britain, Italy, Australia, Canada, Germany, Sweden, Japan and a number of other countries have already announced the cessation of funding for the organization. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called on countries not to allow the agency's work to be interrupted. The media reported that without renewed funding, the agency would not be able to operate after February. Israel has already officially stated that it will strive in every possible way to stop the activities of UNRWA.
On October 7, Israel was subjected to an unprecedented-scale rocket attack from the Gaza Strip as part of Operation Al-Aqsa Flood, announced by the military wing of the Palestinian Hamas movement. After this, the organization’s fighters entered the border areas in southern Israel, where they opened fire on both military and civilians, and also took more than 200 hostages. In Israel, according to the latest data from the authorities, about 1.2 thousand people were killed, this number includes civilians, soldiers, foreign citizens and workers, and it was also reported that more than 5 thousand were injured.
In response, the Israel Defense Forces launched Operation Iron Swords against Hamas in the Gaza Strip. Within a few days, the Israeli military took control of all populated areas near the border with Gaza and began carrying out air strikes on targets, including civilians, in the strip. Israel also announced a complete blockade of the Gaza Strip: the supply of water, food, electricity, medicine, and fuel was stopped. At the end of October, the ground phase of the Israeli operation in the enclave began. Gaza City was surrounded by Israeli ground forces, and the enclave was effectively divided into southern and northern parts.
The number of victims of Israeli shelling of the Gaza Strip since October 7 has exceeded 28 thousand, more than 67 thousand people were injured.
Hamas claimed that there were about 200-250 hostages in the Gaza Strip. After the end of the truce, Israeli authorities announced that 126 Israelis and 11 foreigners remained hostage with Hamas, and 110 abducted were released.
The Russian Foreign Ministry called on the parties to stop hostilities. According to the position of Russian President Vladimir Putin, the settlement of the Middle East crisis is possible only on the basis of a “two-state” formula approved by the UN Security Council, which provides for the creation of an independent Palestinian state within the 1967 borders with its capital in East Jerusalem.
The Palestinian-Israeli conflict, related to the territorial interests of the parties, has been a source of tension and clashes in the region for many decades. A UN decision with the active role of the USSR in 1947 determined the creation of two states — Israel and Palestine, but only the Israeli one was created.