The Israel Defense Forces and the domestic security agency Shin Bet said in a joint statement that they had arrested a key Hamas commander in the southern Gaza Strip on Friday.
The apprehended militant, a commander in Hamas' Eastern Rafah Battalion, tried to flee through a tunnel in Rafah, according to the statement.
After identifying eight militants exiting the tunnel in eastern Rafah overnight, three of whom were killed, the Israeli army conducted searches in the area, it added, without naming the apprehended militant.
The military says troops are continuing to scan the area for the other gunmen to “locate and eliminate” them.
![November 2025 in photos: New Year at GUM, the "City of Living Stories," and autumn scenes](https://en.vestikavkaza.ru/upload2/s400xfull/2025-12-02/1764706769692f49d1538777.83780174.webp "November 2025 in photos: New Year at GUM, the "City of Living Stories," and autumn scenes")
