The Palestinian prisoners who escaped high security jail through the toilet

A manhunt is under way in Israel after six Palestinian prisoners escaped from what was considered to be one of the country’s most secure jails.

The men are believed to have dug a hole in the floor of their toilet at Gilboa prison, a facility in northern Israel nicknamed “the safe”. They then “crawled through a cavity” and “tunnelled beneath the outer wall”, the BBC said.

The Jerusalem Post reported that they had used a rusty spoon that they hid behind a poster for the escape, which took place at around 1.30am local time.

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The escapees include a former leader of the militant group Al-Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigade and five Islamic Jihad members. The authorities were alerted by farmers and a local taxi driver, who noticed “suspicious figures” running through local fields, The Jerusalem Post reported.

Prison staff carried out a headcount and found six inmates were missing, however, not before the fugitives were given a change of clothes before speeding off in a getaway car that was waiting for them near by.

The biggest prison break of its kind for decades has been described by Naftali Bennett as a “grave incident”. The Israeli PM added that the getaway “requires an across-the-board effort by the security forces” to find the fugitives.

The escape “marks an embarrassing security breach just ahead of the Jewish New Year, when Israelis flock to the north to enjoy beaches, campsites and the Sea of Galilee”, said The Independent.

A preliminary police investigation has revealed a series of errors made by prison officials. There were intelligence warnings about three of the prisoners before the escape, which suggested they were planning to flee. According to France 24, a warden, who was in the guard tower above the escape tunnel shaft, was also asleep at the time of the incident.

It is thought that the prisoners may have gone into hiding or fled the country. However, The Jerusalem Post says police are preparing for the possibility that the terrorists “might attempt to carry out an attack during the Rosh Hashana holiday”, including the possibility of kidnapping Israelis in order to release other prisoners.

Patrols around synagogues in the north of Israel have been increased. More than 200 roadblocks have been erected throughout the country and security forces are also using special units in the search involving dogs and aerial support.

One of the fugitives is Zakaria Zubeidi, a former commander of Al-Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigade, who was responsible for multiple terror attacks and for killing many Israelis. Once considered a “symbol of the Intifada”, he renounced militancy over a decade ago.

The other five men were identified as Munadil Nafayat, Iham Kahamji, Yaquob Qadiri and brothers Mahmoud and Mohammed al-Arida. All are members of Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) from towns near Jenin.

In a statement, PIJ described the escape as “heroic” and “an utter failure for the occupation army”.

A Hamas spokesperson, Fawzi Barhoum, added that the escape is a “great victory that proves that the will and determination of the resistance fighters and mujahedin cannot be defeated regardless of the challenges”.