Security

Israel Strikes Gaza Smuggling Tunnel

The Israeli air force bombed a smuggling tunnel connecting Egypt and Gaza on Tuesday, after rockets and mortars were fired at Israel. “Such exchanges of fire, once routine, have become rare in recent months,” The Huffington Post notes. Israel targeted scores of similar tunnels during Operation Cast Lead beginning in December 2008, but the “tunnel […]

Gaza TunnelThe Israeli air force bombed a smuggling tunnel connecting Egypt and Gaza on Tuesday, after rockets and mortars were fired at Israel. "Such exchanges of fire, once routine, have become rare in recent months," The Huffington Post notes.

Israel targeted scores of similar tunnels during Operation Cast Lead beginning in December 2008, but the "tunnel war" dates back much further. "The Israeli Defense Forces claim to have discovered and destroyed some 90 tunnels, an estimated 95 percent [of all tunnels], in southern Gaza between late 2000 and mid 2004," Defpro's Nicolas von Kospoth reminds us.

The tunnels are generally dug at depths of approximately 15 to 25 meters (49 to 82 feet) and reach lengths of up to 800 meters (2,640 feet). Regardless of the well-concealed underground connections, the tunnel diggers and operators have a tough life, as the general location is not difficult to guess ... and the Israeli air force is not at all hesitant to strike at suspected tunnels.

Besides bombing, Israel is considering other countermeasures, von Kospoth reports. These include seismic sensors designed by Israeli firm Rafael, plus "controlled random explosions underground and along the border to thwart the tunnel diggers" -- a tactic von Kospoth says has been "used by the U.S. Army along the Mexican border."

Tunnels are all the rage, these days. Between underground Iranian nuclear facilities and North Korean artillery warrens, the U.S. faces all sorts of buried threats. Last week, the Air Force announced it would speed up delivery of its 30,000-pound "Massive Ordnance Penetrator" bunker-busting bomb. The first should be available in July for use on B-2 bombers.

[PHOTO: via Defpro]

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