A Hamas commander and three other terrorists equipped with a slain Israeli soldier’s rifle were killed trying to escape a Gaza tunnel housing dozens of trapped operatives, the IDF said Sunday.
The terrorists were spotted emerging from a tunnel under Israeli control in eastern Rafah early Sunday and taken out by nearby Israel Defense Force soldiers and the Israeli Air Force.
Israeli Col. Arik Moyal appeared on social media to announce the attack, which killed the commander of Hamas’ East Rafah Battalion, his deputy, a company commander and the son of senior Hamas official Ghazi Hamad.
Moyal is seen in the footage holding a Tavor assault rifle recovered from the slain terrorists, which he said belonged to Staff Sgt. Or Mizrahi, an IDF soldier killed during the Oct. 7, 2023, massacre, the Times of Israel reported.
“This is what happens to those who mess with us. Either they surrender, or we’ll kill them,” Moyal said in the video as he held the rifle in front of the Israeli flag.
The fate of an estimated 60 to 80 Hamas members still trapped underneath Rafah remained unclear Sunday.
The operatives have been hiding in the region’s complex tunnel network at least since the majority of the area fell under Israeli occupation when the cease-fire began last month. Israel has kept them trapped amid repeated attacks on IDF troops in Rafah — including one that killed two soldiers.
More than 30 terror operatives have been killed trying to flee from the tunnels, with another eight taken into custody, according to the IDF.
Hamas terrorists are believed to be trying to flee the tunnels also because they are running out of food and water, according to Israeli reports.
Hamas has claimed that its communication systems have broken down and that the gunmen in the underground aren’t aware of the temporary truce.
The Hamas members now find themselves as bargaining chips during the slowed cease-fire talks between the terror group and Israel, with mediators trying to negotiate terms for their safe passage out of the occupied area of Gaza.
Israeli officials have previously stated that the gunmen would only be allowed to walk free if Hamas agrees to demilitarize, a condition the terror group has long-rejected until a pathway for Palestinian statehood is granted.
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