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Israel finds second Hezbollah tunnel

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The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) announced on Saturday night that they found a second Hezbollah tunnel that had been dug under Israeli territory.

IDF Spokesman Brig. Gen. Ronen Manelis said the IDF had taken measures to ensure that the tunnel can no longer be used by placing explosives inside the tunnel. During the operation to uncover the tunnel, IDF soldiers opened fire at three suspicious figures attempting to steal the IDF’s tunnel excavation technology. “The troops opened fire on the suspects as per the rules of engagement,” Manelis said, explaining that the men had taken advantage of the bad weather to steal IDF equipment.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that the IDF are continuing to operate in the north with ‘great success’. He said: “We are destroying Hezbollah’s tunnel weaponry methodically and decisively.” Netanyahu stressed that this operation was just beginning and cool-headedness and patience are necessary. IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Gadi Eisenkot met at IDF headquarters with the head of the Lebanon-based UN peacekeeping force UNIFIL Maj. Gen. Stefano Del Col, calling on him and the Lebanese military to destroy the cross-border tunnels that Hezbollah has dug into northern Israel from southern Lebanon.

While not commenting directly on the IDF operation, Hezbollah Deputy Secretary General Sheikh Naim Kassem told the Iranian newspaper Al-Vefagh: “The Israeli discourse shows that war with Lebanon is out of the question for them. The rules of the game are set by Hezbollah on the ground. The balance of deterrence makes it very hard for Israel to initiate a war against Lebanon. There is not a place in the Zionist entity that is not within Hezbollah’s range.”