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Israel vows armed response to any sign of Hamas aggression

Xinhua, April 18, 2016 Adjust font size:

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel would respond "with force" to any sign of Hamas aggression, after the Israeli military discovered an underground tunnel crossing from the Gaza Strip into Israel.

"Israel will respond with force to any attempt by Hamas to attack its soldiers and citizens," Netanyahu said in a statement released by his office on Monday afternoon.

The prime minister credited the discovery of the tunnel to "groundbreaking technology" operated by the Israeli military and the Shin Bet security agency. He also said Israeli forces are continuing to operate to thwart underground tunnels.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) spokesperson said earlier on Monday the military had discovered a Hamas tunnel that crossed from the Gaza Strip enclave into Israel's territory, the first such discovery since the 2014 Gaza War.

Israeli security forces discovered the tunnel 10 days ago using advanced technological means and destroyed it, the IDF spokesperson said in a statement. No details were given as to the exact location of the tunnel.

Hamas said in response to the discovery that the tunnel was "old" and was built prior to the 2014 conflict. Several Palestinians have been killed in recent months due to tunnels collapse.

Israel went on the offensive against Hamas in the Gaza Strip in the summer of 2014, amid launching of rockets towards communities in southern Israel by Hamas, as well as the discovery of over 30 tunnels.

Israel believes Hamas planned to carry out attacks against Israeli citizens and soldiers via the tunnels.

Israel's 51-day-long offensive in Gaza claimed the lives of at least 2,250 Palestinians, 65 percent of who were civilians, according to United Nations.

Seventy-two Israelis had died during the campaign, all but six were soldiers, while others were citizens killed by rockets launched from the Gaza Strip towards Israeli communities. The fighting ended with a cease-fire on August 26, 2014.

Since the cease-fire, sporadic rocket attacks took place from the Gaza Strip, without causing Israeli casualties. The Israeli Air Force struck targets in the enclave in response to some of the attacks, killing several Palestinians. Endit