Israel’s defense leadership has warned that a majority of Hamas’s subterranean network in Gaza is still intact, underscoring the scale of the unfinished work beneath densely populated areas. On October 25, 2025, Defense Minister Israel Katz told U.S. Senator JD Vance that more than 60% of tunnels have yet to be destroyed and stressed that dismantling the underground grid is central to demobilizing Hamas and securing Israel’s south. He framed the mission as a high priority in any future framework meant to stabilize the Strip.
Katz linked the ongoing effort to broader strategic aims, saying that neutralizing the tunnels—used for smuggling, command, and attacks—must be a shared objective with international partners. Securing key corridors and preventing the reconstitution of militant capability is, in his view, part of translating battlefield gains into lasting security for returning communities.
The continuing challenge below ground, officials suggest, remains one of the most complex obstacles to a durable calm. As discussions about future arrangements continue, the defense establishment emphasizes that success will be measured not only above the surface but by what is permanently dismantled below it.
(JPost/VFI News)
“The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer; my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge.” – Psalm 18:2
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