Muhammad Shlouf, a member of the Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of the Hamas movement, was killed by an electric shock on Saturday while working inside a tunnel in the besieged Gaza Strip, the organization stated yesterday.
A number of Palestinians in Gaza have been injured and killed in the vast tunnel networks that lie below the besieged enclave.
In April and May, Israeli forces claimed to have uncovered the first two tunnels crossing from the Gaza Strip into Israel since Israel’s brutal offensive on Gaza in 2014.
Hamas fighter dies of electric shock inside Gaza tunnel https://t.co/q1vwKmsqqB #palestine
— Ma'an News Agency (@MaanNewsAgency) August 13, 2016
The Hamas movement which governs the blockaded Palestinian territory has been allegedly reconstructing a vast tunnel network intended to be used for carrying out attacks on Israeli military targets and civilians, swathes of which were destroyed during the war.
While Israel has accused Hamas of using the tunnels to transport weapons, they also supply highly-demanded necessities for Gazans who have been trapped under Israeli siege for a decade, including food, medicine, and much-needed infrastructure materials.
The Institute for Palestine Studies reported in 2012 that Hamas authorities had counted 160 deaths inside the tunnels since the Israeli blockade began in 2007, and in August 2014, al-Jazeera reported that figure to be as high as 400.
(PC, MA’AN)
