Israel carried out its largest civilian drill near the Gaza border since the 2014 Gaza war.
The drill at Kibbutz Erez Friday brought together the Israel Defense Forces, police, Magen David Adom medics, the fire department and others in a simulated Hamas attack on a kibbutz near the border. Citing a Channel 2 report, the Times of Israel said the simulation involved terrorists taking hostages and then being overpowered by troops in the kibbutz dining hall.
Israeli officials have said in recent days that while they do not anticipate a new war in the near future, they are stepping up security measures and adding troops near the border.
Meanwhile, Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh reiterated Friday the Islamist group’s commitment to fighting Israel.
“Our message to the prisoners is a message inked in blood. The rifle and the tunnel are our commitment,” Haniyeh said at a Gaza rally, the Times of Israel reported.
Hamas has expanded its elite fighting unit to 5,000 soldiers, but has faced setbacks in building rockets, in part because Egypt has closed tunnels that enabled materials to be smuggled from there into Gaza, according to the Times of Israel.
