Tunnel found under UN school in Gaza

OCCUPIED-AL-QUDS: The United Nations said on Thursday it discovered a “man-made cavity” under one of its schools in Gaza, the Palestinian territory controlled by Hamas, which boasts a network of tunnels, some of them used in past wars against Israel.

“The agency protested strongly to the relevant authorities in Gaza to express outrage and condemnation of the presence of such a structure underneath one of its installations,” the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) said in a statement.

The “cavity” constituted “a serious violation of the agency´s neutrality and a breach of international law,” UNRWA said, noting it exposed children and UN staff to “significant security and safety risks”.

The Israeli army said the cavity was in fact a tunnel dug by Gaza militants. “Rain likely created a hole in the ground that revealed the structure of a terrorist tunnel next to an UNRWA school in Gaza,” an Israeli military source told AFP on condition of anonymity. The UN did not disclose the school´s location.