The IDF announced on Monday that it had discovered a concealed underground shaft near the home of one of the Hamas terrorists who killed two IDF soldiers in an attack on Friday.
According to the IDF, the shaft was approximately 15 meters deep and relatively narrow. It was found near the terrorist’s home in the Hebron area of the West Bank.
While the discovery was not unprecedented, underground shafts are extremely rare in the West Bank. Underground warfare has been more commonly associated with Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon, where tunnels have played a significant role in military operations, than with Hamas in the West Bank, where the IDF maintains greater control and surveillance.
The discovery came after the IDF searched approximately 500 Palestinian homes and other locations throughout the West Bank, particularly in the Hebron area, as part of its efforts following Friday’s attack.
The IDF also said it had found an unidentified electronic device inside the shaft. The device was transferred to investigators for examination.
Two troops killed after terrorists with machine gun open fire in West Bank
Staff Sergeant Ron Yonatan Roytman, 23, from Ashkelon, and Sergeant Yuval Shai Svilem, 20, from Hod Hasharon, were named on Friday as the two soldiers killed in the attack.
Roytman was a squad commander, while Svilem was a combat soldier in the Ari Battalion (775) of the Search and Rescue Brigade, according to the IDF.
Both soldiers were killed in combat at the Judea Junction when two terrorists traveling in a car, armed with an M4 machine gun and a pistol, opened fire on soldiers at the scene.