Israel Defense Forces troops operating overnight Tuesday outside the northern Gaza Strip town of Jebaliya uncovered an opening to a tunnel into Israel. The opening was discovered during a Givati infantry raid some 700 meters inside the border fence.
The tunnel was in its preliminary stages, and military sources believe that it was dug to serve as a pathway for suicide bombers into Israel. A similar tunnel was used by Gaza terror groups to enter Israel and kidnap IDF corporal Gilad Shalit near kibbutz Kerem Shalom in June 2006.
Two armed militants were killed in an exchange of fire that erupted during the raid. The militants were apparently equipped with an RPG rocket launcher and Kalashnikov rifles. The IDF force sustained no casualties.
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The IDF said that the raid, which concluded Tuesday afternoon, was a routine defense operation aimed at foiling terror infrastructure in the area.
Earlier Tuesday, two Qassam rockets slammed into the Western Negev Regional Council. The rockets caused no casualties or damage.
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