Story perspectives

IDF Seals 16km Rafah Tunnel, Kills Hamas Leaders

6/30/2026

Center

IDF Seals Tunnel

Engineers said sealed tunnel housed 80 living quarters and acted as a Hamas hub beneath sites, including a UNRWA clinic.
The Israeli Defense Forces sealed a 16-kilometre underground tunnel in southern Rafah, using over 30,000 cubic metres of concrete.
The IDF killed Hamas operative Ismail Masri, head of Rafah Brigade’s military defense, on Tuesday.
Walid Haniyeh, nephew of Ismail Haniyeh and Nukhba commander, was killed in a Thursday raid.

Right

IDF Eliminates Hamas

IDF intelligence warned Hamas is rebuilding, manufacturing explosives and recruiting 18- to 22-year-olds, while the United States opposes renewed fighting.
Israel Defense Forces killed Hamas operative Ismail Masri, head of military security for the Rafah Brigade, in Gaza on Tuesday.
The IDF eliminated commander Walid Haniyeh and tunnel-unit head Kamal Muhammad Hamdan Nagar in June.
Hamas detained and intimidated suspected participants, reducing the June 26 anti-Hamas protests to a few hundred.

History

Historical Context

After Israel withdrew from Gaza in September 2005, Hamas built extensive smuggling tunnels, including the 2.5-km Rafah tunnel uncovered in 2006 that held 30 living quarters and cost about $12 million, prompting Operation Summer Rains after Gilad Shalit’s capture. The IDF’s sealing of a 16-km tunnel and killing of operatives Ismail Masri and Walid Haniyeh shows the same underground strategy drives Israeli security and humanitarian concerns.

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IDF Seals Tunnel

Engineers said sealed tunnel housed 80 living quarters and acted as a Hamas hub beneath sites, including a UNRWA clinic.
The Israeli Defense Forces sealed a 16-kilometre underground tunnel in southern Rafah, using over 30,000 cubic metres of concrete.
The IDF killed Hamas operative Ismail Masri, head of Rafah Brigade’s military defense, on Tuesday.
Walid Haniyeh, nephew of Ismail Haniyeh and Nukhba commander, was killed in a Thursday raid.

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