Innovative sensors uncover Hamas tunnel into Israel

Gaza border fence: Reuters
Gaza border fence: Reuters

A new system of detectors has discovered an assault tunnel beneath the Israel-Gaza border fence.

Using an innovative system of sensors, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) has uncovered an assault tunnel dug by Hamas from the center of the Gaza Strip into Israeli territory. 30 meters deep, the tunnel cut several dozen meters beyond the border fence into Israel close to villages near the southern Gaza strip. After the tunnel was found, it was destroyed.

The tunnel was uncovered ten days ago but permission to publish details on the matter was only granted today.

Defense sources believe that the tunnel would have been used by Hamas in future hostilities with Israel, as was the case in the 2006 abduction of IDF soldier Gilad Shalit, or perhaps as part of a terror attack targeting local villages. It is believed that the tunnel was dug after Operation Protective Edge in the summer of 2014, in which the IDF discovered and destroyed 32 such assault tunnels dug into Israel.

The latest tunnel was uncovered by an alert from an innovative technological system developed to warn that tunnels have been found along the border with Gaza and along other borders. The new system was first deployed more than a year ago and the tunnel found today using the innovative technology was the first such tunnel discovered since Operation Protective Edge. The system developed is a collaboration between the Ministry of Defense's Administration for the Development of Weapons and Technological Infrastructure, the Geophysical Institute of Israel, Elbit Systems Ltd. (Nasdaq: ESLT; TASE: ESLT), and a small startup.

Details about the new detectors were first published by "Globes" exactly one year ago when the system was first deployed along several stretches of the Israel-Gaza border. The system is based on sensors that warn if an underground vacuum is found and on underground activity both indications raising suspicions that a tunnel could be beneath the ground.

Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on April 18, 2016

© Copyright of Globes Publisher Itonut (1983) Ltd. 2016

Gaza border fence: Reuters
Gaza border fence: Reuters
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