The Israeli army has confirmed for the first time that it has flooded the Islamist Hamas tunnels in the Gaza Strip. The aim is to “neutralize the underground terrorist infrastructure in the Gaza Strip,” the army announced on Tuesday evening. Large amounts of water were led into the tunnels. The army spoke of an “important technical and technological breakthrough” in the “fight against terrorism”.
According to the army, soil analyzes were carried out to ensure that groundwater would not be affected by the flooding. Water was only pumped into suitable tunnel routes. The Israeli army continues to use explosives to destroy tunnels.
Seawater was pumped into some tunnels
US media had already reported in December that the Israeli army was testing flooding in tunnels where no hostages were suspected. Seawater was pumped into some tunnels to see whether the method was suitable for large-scale destruction of the tunnel network. Experts say the tactic could have dramatic consequences for the environment.
Tunnel network hundreds of kilometers long
According to American media, the Islamic Hamas tunnel network in the Gaza Strip is between 480 and 720 kilometers long. According to information from the American newspaper “Wall Street Journal”, 60 to 80 percent of the underground routes are still intact.
In the Khan Younis area of southern Gaza Strip, underground walls or other barriers have in some cases stopped the flow of water during flood attempts. Overall, the method was “not as effective as Israeli representatives had hoped,” the newspaper wrote.
Israel suspects that the leadership of the terrorist organization Hamas and Israeli hostages are in the tunnel network under Khan Younis.
Source: Krone
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