IDF Recovers Remains of Lt. Hadar Goldin from Hamas Tunnel in Rafah

The remains of the late Lt. Hadar Goldin, who fell in battle during Operation Protective Edge and was abducted by the Hamas terrorist organization on August 1, 2014, were returned to Israel and laid to rest in November 2025. Lt. Goldin, 23 at the time of his death, was abducted in Rafah during a ceasefire violation. His return followed over a decade of relentless intelligence and operational efforts by the IDF and the Shin Bet.

In July 2025, during a special operation led by the IDF Southern Command, Shin Bet, and Military Intelligence, troops arrested Marwan Alhamatz, a Hamas operative suspected of knowing the burial location of Lt. Goldin inside the "Dror Lavan" tunnel network in Rafah. This arrest was part of dozens of covert operations conducted over the years to locate and repatriate him.

During subsequent operations in southern Rafah, elite troops from the Commando Brigade, the Yahalom combat engineering unit, and Shayetet 13 uncovered the extensive underground route where Lt. Goldin had been held in recent years. The subterranean network stretched over 16 kilometers, spanned three distinct levels reaching depths of 30 meters, and passed beneath dense civilian areas near the Philadelphi Corridor, including UNRWA facilities, mosques, clinics, and schools.

Inside the tunnel complex, forces located approximately 80 rooms, including command and control centers used by senior Hamas commanders such as Rafah Brigade commander Mohammed Shabana. In June 2026, IDF engineering forces completed the sealing of the "Dror Lavan" tunnel by pumping over 30,000 cubic meters of concrete into the subterranean infrastructure, neutralizing the terror stronghold.