RAFAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — One by one, soldiers filed through a narrow entrance to a tunnel in southern Gaza. In a dark hallway, some ducked their heads to avoid hitting the low ceiling as they tracked their step as they walked over or around jagged concrete, broken plastic bottles and tattered mattresses.
On Monday, the Israeli military took journalists to Rafah – the southernmost town in Gaza that troops captured last year and largely flattened – as the two-month-old Israel-Hamas ceasefire reaches a critical point. Israel has barred international journalists from entering Gaza since the start of the war more than two years ago, except for rare, brief, military-supervised visits like this one.
The soldiers escorted the journalists inside a tunnel, which they said is one of Hamas’ most important and complex underground routes, linking cities in the beaten territory and used by top Hamas commanders. Israel said Hamas held the body of a hostage in the underground passage: Hadar Goldin, a 23-year-old soldier who was killed in Gaza more than a decade ago and whose remains had been held there.
Hamas returned Goldin’s body last month as part of a US-brokered ceasefire in the war sparked by the militants’ October 7, 2023 attack on southern Israel, in which 1,200 people were killed and hundreds taken hostage. Israel’s retaliatory offensive has killed more than 70,000 Palestinians, according to the Gaza Ministry of Health, which operates under the Hamas government. The ministry does not differentiate between civilians and combatants, but says about half of the dead were women and children.
Israel and Hamas are on the verge of completing the first phase of the ceasefire, which mandated the return of all hostages, living and dead, in exchange for Palestinians held by Israel. The body of only one hostage remains to be returned.
Mediators warn that the second phase will be much more difficult because it includes thornier issues such as disarming Hamas and Israel’s withdrawal from the strip. Israel currently controls more than half of Gaza.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is due to travel to Washington this month to discuss next steps with US President Donald Trump.
Piles of rubble line Rafah’s roads
Last year, Israel launched a major operation in Rafah, where many Palestinians had sought refuge from offensives elsewhere. Heavy fighting left much of the city in ruins and displaced nearly a million Palestinians. This year, when the military was largely in control of the city, it systematically demolished most of the buildings that remained standing, according to satellite photos.
The troops also took over and closed vital crossing RafahGaza’s only gateway to the outside world that was not controlled by Israel.
Israel has said Rafah is Hamas’ last major stronghold and key to dismantling the group’s military capabilities, a major war objective.
On the way around Rafah on Monday, towers of broken concrete, wires and twisted metal lined the roads, with few buildings still standing and none unscathed. Remnants of people’s lives were scattered on the ground: a foam mattress, towels and a book explaining the Koran.
Last week, Israel said it was ready to reopen the Rafah crossing, but only for people to leave the strip. Egypt and many Palestinians fear that once people leave, they will not be allowed to return. They say Israel is obligated to open the crossing in both directions.
Israel said entry into Gaza would not be allowed until Israel received all remaining hostages in the strip.
Inside the tunnel
The tunnel through which the journalists were escorted passes under what was once a densely populated residential area, under a United Nations compound and mosques. Today, Rafah is a ghost town. Underground, journalists made their way around dangling cables and uneven concrete slabs covered in sand.
The military says the tunnel is more than 7 kilometers (4 miles) long and up to 25 meters (82 feet) deep, and was used for weapons storage as well as long-term stays. Top Hamas commanders were said to have been there during the war, including Mohammed Sinwar – who was believed to have headed Hamas’s armed wing and was the younger brother of Yahya Sinwar, the Hamas leader who helped organize the October 7 attack. Israel said it killed them both.
“What we see here is a perfect example of what Hamas has done with all the money and equipment that has been brought into Gaza over the years,” said Lt. Col. Nadav Shoshani. “Hamas took it and built an incredible underground city for the purpose of terror and holding hostage bodies.”
Israel has long accused Hamas of providing money for military purposes. While Hamas says Palestinians are an occupied people and have the right to resist, the group also has a civilian arm and ran a government that provided services such as health care, a police force and education.
The army has not decided what to do with the tunnel. They could seal it with concrete, blow it up, or hold it for intelligence purposes, among other options.
Since the cease-fire began, three soldiers have been killed in clashes with about 200 Hamas militants who Israeli and Egyptian officials say remain underground in Israeli-held territory.
Hamas said that communication with its remaining units in Rafah had been cut off for months and that it was not responsible for any incidents that occurred in those areas.
Both Israel and Hamas have accused each other of repeated violations of the agreement in the first phase. Israel has accused Hamas of delaying the return of the hostages, while Palestinian health officials say more than 370 Palestinians have been killed in continued Israeli attacks since the ceasefire took effect.
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Editor’s note: This article was submitted for review by Israel’s military censor, who made no changes.