Israeli soldiers find massive Hamas weapons depot near school in northern Gaza Strip

Israeli soldiers found a massive weapons depot during their operations against the terror group Hamas in the northern Gaza Strip, the IDF announced on Wednesday.

The cache was discovered by soldiers of the 460th Brigade’s battlegroup in the heart of a civilian area near a school and a hospital.

“We are in the heart of a residential neighborhood, you can also see the area of the schools next to me,” Lt.- Col. Tomer, commander of the force that found the weapons, said in a video showing the find while pointing to buildings behind him.

“This is further proof of the cynical use of the residents of the Gaza Strip as a human shield by the terrorist organization Hamas,” the IDF stated.

The stockpile contained hundreds of RPG missiles and launchers of various types, dozens of anti-tank missiles, long-range missiles aimed toward the center of Israel, as well as dozens of explosive charges, grenades and drones.

Among the stockpile of weapons seen in footage released by the IDF are drones of the type “Shehab,” which are locally produced by Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

Lt.-Col. Tomer stressed that the drones and long-range missiles are strategic weapons that can inflict serious damage deep inside Israel.

The weapons were collected and then taken by the soldiers; some were destroyed in the field and others were sent to Israeli authorities for further investigation.

The weapons stockpile is one of the largest yet to be found in the Gaza Strip during the IDF's ground operation and indicates the scale of the threat that Hamas posed to Israel's civilian population prior to its attack on Oct. 7.