The Israeli military put on display a cross-border attack tunnel, that was dug from the Gaza Strip into Israel, which was intended for use by Palestinian Islamists. The tunnel was destroyed by the IDF in an operation that took place on the 30th of October, in which twelve Palestinian militants of the Islamic Jihad and Hamas organizations were killed. The IDF said the tunnel, which ran two-kilometers-long and about 120 meters inside Israel, was discovered through the means of new technological capabilities acquired by the Israeli military. It was one of three tunnels that were identified by means of the new capabilities and destroyed in the last two months. IDF Spokesman Lt. Col. Jonathan Conricus said, “The tunnel that we see here is one of three tunnels that have been destroyed over the last two months by the IDF. Thanks to new capabilities that we have, which are a combination of technological, intelligence and operational capabilities that are new, and a game changer,” he said. In addition to the IDF’s new technological capabilities to locate cross-border attack tunnels, Israel is constructing a physical underground barrier along the security fence, which Lieutenant-Colonel Conricus stressed ‘will serve as a significant defensive capability, alongside other components, that will challenge the ability of Islamist organizations in the Gaza Strip from constructing cross-border attack tunnels. The IDF spokesman noted, “The tunnel that we see here is one of three tunnels that have been destroyed over the last two months by the IDF. Thanks to new capabilities that we have, which are a combination of technological, intelligence and operational capabilities that are new, and a game changer,” he asserted. That said, even though the Israeli military has significantly advanced its defensive capabilities, Conricus emphasized that the threats posed by the Islamist organizations in the Gaza Strip continues to exist. Lieutenant-Colonel Conricus warned, however, “Threats will continue to exist. Hamas still holds a significant arsenal of rockets that are aimed at Israeli cities and civilians and Hamas has been overt about their intentions to kill Israeli civilians with whatever means they have capable, so the threat has not passed and the terror from Hamas has not passed and we will continue to mitigate these other military capabilities that Hamas has. Concerning tunnels, today the situation is greatly improved,” Conricus proclaimed.
A senior military official from the IDF’s Southern Command told TV7 that while Israel boosts its capabilities against Hamas’ ability to attack Israel through its attack tunnels, the Islamist ruler of the Palestinian enclave does not want to clash with Israel, and that it would not go to war over the loss of its asset underground assets. The official warned, however, that the economic situation across the Gaza Strip was “the toughest it has been in the last decade.” He added that Hamas was in diplomatic, economic and military distress, and that Israel’s policy was to attempt to prevent a humanitarian disaster, but not allow internationally-supported projects that failed to meet the following conditions: cutting ties with Iran, returning the missing Israeli civilians and the bodies of the fallen soldiers in Gaza, and turning over all projects within the enclave to the Palestinian Authority.