The Israeli military has disabled a major tunnel that was dug by militants that reached into Israel from the Gaza Strip, which is the fifth Gaza tunnel that has been destroyed in recent months.

Defence Minister Avigdor Lieberman said it was the longest and deepest tunnel of its kind Israel had discovered.

A military spokesman said it had been dug since the 2014 Gaza war, when Israel destroyed more than 30 tunnels, and stretched over "several kilometres" into Gaza and connected with other tunnels from which attacks could be launched.