һ

U.S. Ambassador to Israel Dan Shapiro appearing on popular Israeli TV Show "State of the Union." Photo: Screen shot.

Early last week, Dan Shapiro, the U.S. Ambassador to Israel, visited the Hamas terror tunnel recently uncovered by the IDF. He was taken on a tour of the tunnel and its adjacent network by Brigadier General Mickey Edelstein, Commander of the IDF’s Gaza Division.  “¬

“ªWhen interviewed about the trip, Shapiro said in Hebrew “Even though I have seen the photos of the tunnel in the papers, the truth is I was shocked by what I saw. It is clear that this tunnel has only one purpose: to carry out terrorist attacks against Israeli civilians and IDF soldiers.”

“There is no justification for this in our eyes; in no way will the U.S. allow this. The U.S.,” he added, “fully condemns these acts by terror groups.””¬

After the tour, Ambassador Shapiro tweeted the following: “US condemns terrorist tunnels, supports Israel’s right and ability to self-defense, and is focused on advancing negotiations for peace.”

“ªThe booby-trapped terror tunnel, exposed by the IDF on October 7, originated in the Gaza town of Absan al-Zariz, located between the city of Khan Younis and the Gaza security fence. It extended for 1.7 kilometers, ending right near Kibbutz Ein Hashlosha in Israel.”¬

“ªHamas and other terror organizations in Gaza have invested millions of dollars and extensive resources into building an intricate network of tunnels leading to Israel. These tunnels are built for attacks and kidnappings, as in the case of IDF captive soldier Gilad Shalit, who was released in 2011. The IDF spokesperson’s office stated that terrorists are consistently using construction materials transferred into the Gaza Strip by Israel as part of a humanitarian aid effort in order to build such tunnels.”¬

“ªThe IDF told Tazpit News Agency that three such “attack tunnels” have been discovered in 2013 alone.”¬

For a video clip of the Ambassador’s visit, see below:”¬