JERUSALEM (VINnews) – The Israel Defense Forces said it recently destroyed four Hamas tunnels in the southern Gaza Strip, including one that the terror group had used to hold hostages.

The tunnels, totaling approximately four kilometers (about 2.5 miles) in length, were located on the Israeli side of the Gaza ceasefire line, the military said.

One of the tunnel routes was part of a larger underground network that Hamas had used to hold hostages, according to the IDF. The tunnel included several rooms that senior commanders in Hamas’s Khan Younis Brigade had also used.

The operation comes amid ongoing Israeli efforts to dismantle Hamas’s extensive tunnel infrastructure in Gaza following the Oct. 7, 2023, terror attack and the ensuing war.