Israel Defense Forces Reveal New Details of the Search for Hadar Goldin in Rafah
The Israel Defense Forces released new details on November 9 about the search for Lieutenant Hadar Goldin, one year after his remains were returned from Gaza. The account describes intelligence operations and a Hamas tunnel system beneath Rafah.
Goldin, a Givati reconnaissance officer, was killed in Rafah on August 1, 2014, when Hamas terrorists violated a ceasefire during Operation Protective Edge and took his body. His remains returned to Israel on November 9, 2025, through the hostage return framework, and he was buried two days later.
A July Arrest Formed Part of the Search
The Jerusalem Post and Walla, reporting the military's November 9 account, described a special operation in July 2025 in which Southern Command troops and the Shin Bet arrested Marwan al-Hams. Military Intelligence guided the operation.
The military identified him as a Hamas operative suspected of knowing where Goldin was buried inside the Dror Lavan tunnel in Rafah. His arrest was one of dozens of covert operations conducted over the years in the effort to bring Goldin home for burial.
The search combined intelligence collection with activity on the ground and intensified during the war.
Three Levels Beneath Southern Rafah
The military's account described an underground route extending more than 10 kilometers, with three levels and a deepest point about 30 meters below ground. Forces from the Commando Brigade, the Yahalom combat engineering unit and the Shayetet 13 naval commando unit took part in uncovering it.
According to the army, the route passed beneath a dense residential area near the Philadelphi Corridor, along Gaza's border with Egypt. It continued beneath an UNRWA compound, mosques, clinics, kindergartens and schools.
Troops found around 80 rooms, including command spaces used for weapons storage, extended stays underground and planning attacks against Israeli forces. The army named Hamas Rafah Brigade commander Mohammed Shabana among the senior figures who used the system.
Engineering Work Continued After the Return
The army had already published an account on June 30, 2026, of the work to seal Dror Lavan. That engineering account described a 16 kilometer system reaching a depth of roughly 30 meters, and said the sealing operation had been completed the previous day.
The June account explained that the work began in March after years of intelligence gathering and mapping. Goldin's return had opened the way to sealing the route. Southern Command engineering forces, the Gaza Division and Yahalom participated in the operation.
Forces used more than 30,000 cubic meters of concrete. An official quoted by the army described treating each section according to the conditions encountered, with continuous adjustments during the work. The operation took three months and formed part of the wider effort to seal Hamas tunnels in Gaza.
Identification Preceded the Family Notification
The National Center of Forensic Medicine carried out the identification process with the Israel Police and the Military Rabbinate. Military representatives then informed Goldin's family that his remains had been returned for burial.
The November account also described an operation immediately after his return: in November 2025, a Nahal Brigade combat team destroyed the shaft through which Hamas terrorists had taken him more than 11 years earlier.
