Israeli Defence Forces set to demolish the longest Hezbollah cross-border attack tunnel

Six months after the Israeli military declared an end to Operation Northern Shield, the IDF is set to demolish the largest known attack tunnel ever dug into Israeli territory by the Iranian-backed Lebanese terrorist group Hezbollah, it was announced on Wednesday.

Colonel Roi Levi of the IDF’s Brigade 300 said, “We are neutralizing the flagship tunnel of the terror organization Hezbollah.” The tunnels are destroyed by explosions or by flooding them with liquid concrete.

An army source stated that the purpose of the tunnel was to allow infiltrators to cross into Israel and attack communities near the border with Lebanon.

The underground infrastructure was described by the IDF as the “longest and most detailed” attack tunnel it has ever discovered. The tunnel was reportedly 2,600 feet long and extended several meters into Israel. It was also the deepest found to date, at a depth of 180 feet.

The tunnel, which took Hezbollah several years to construct, was also assessed to be the most sophisticated, containing a rail system, electricity, and exit stairs. It originated in the village of Ramyeh in southern Lebanon and was meant to end between the towns of Shtula and Zarit in northern Israel.

At the beginning of December, Israel launched Operation Northern Shield to seek and destroy cross-border attack tunnels that the Iranian-sponsored terrorist organization Hezbollah built into Israeli territory.

The IDF announced in January that it had found a sixth and final tunnel. Five have been confirmed to exist by the UN. The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), in charge of keeping the peace on the Lebanese-Israeli border, was informed of the violation.

“Of these, three tunnels have been found to be crossing the Blue Line,” UNIFIL noted in a statement in April, saying that an “independent assessment” had confirmed a violation of Resolution 1701. The peacekeeping force said it had “informed the Lebanese authorities about the violation and has requested urgent follow-up actions.”

Earlier this month, Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah repeated his threat to invade Israel’s northern Galilee region. In a speech aired on Lebanese television, the terror chief warned: “The resistance can penetrate the Galilee and the enemy knows it.”

Source: The Tower