Israel to build underground barrier to block Hamas
The project is part of an effort to stop terrorists from Hamas using tunnels to attack civilians
The Israeli government has begun work on a massive underground barrier along the border with Gaza meant to block Hamas militants from tunnelling into Israel, defence officials said.
The project is the hallmark of a huge Israeli effort to halt the Hamas tunnels, which military officials have identified as a strategic threat. Hamas militants have used underground tunnels to attack Israelis.
During a 2014 war, Hamas militants managed on several occasions to make their way intoIsrael through their tunnel network, though they did not reach nearby civilian areas.
Israel destroyed some 32 tunnels during that conflict and has announced the discovery of several more tunnels since then.
As a result, the military has invested great efforts in technologies to detect, destroy and block them.
Israel has already surrounded Gaza with a sophisticated above-ground fence fortified with sensors, cameras, barbed wire and watch towers.
The defence officials said work on the underground barrier had begun in recent weeks. When it is completed, it is expected to stretch the entire length of the roughly 45-mile border.
The officials said the concrete barrier will run hundreds of feet deep. Israel is currently building an initial phase of the barrier over a small stretch of land measuring dozens of meters.
At Kibbutz Erez, a community on Israel’s southern border with Gaza, work crews were busy on Thursday using cranes, heavy machinery and cement mixers. Caravans were scattered around the site, while large metal pipes ran along the ground.
The officials said the barrier’s construction could take years.
Salah Bardawil, a senior Hamas official in Gaza, said the group would not be deterred.
“The Palestinian people and the resistance can overcome all the obstacles made by the occupation. The resistance is creative and advanced and doesn’t care about the occupation’s procedures,” he said.
Thank you for helping to make Jewish News the leading source of news and opinion for the UK Jewish community. Today we're asking for your invaluable help to continue putting our community first in everything we do.
For as little as £5 a month you can help sustain the vital work we do in celebrating and standing up for Jewish life in Britain.
Jewish News holds our community together and keeps us connected. Like a synagogue, it’s where people turn to feel part of something bigger. It also proudly shows the rest of Britain the vibrancy and rich culture of modern Jewish life.
You can make a quick and easy one-off or monthly contribution of £5, £10, £20 or any other sum you’re comfortable with.
100% of your donation will help us continue celebrating our community, in all its dynamic diversity...
Engaging
Being a community platform means so much more than producing a newspaper and website. One of our proudest roles is media partnering with our invaluable charities to amplify the outstanding work they do to help us all.
Celebrating
There’s no shortage of oys in the world but Jewish News takes every opportunity to celebrate the joys too, through projects like Night of Heroes, 40 Under 40 and other compelling countdowns that make the community kvell with pride.
Pioneering
In the first collaboration between media outlets from different faiths, Jewish News worked with British Muslim TV and Church Times to produce a list of young activists leading the way on interfaith understanding.
Campaigning
Royal Mail issued a stamp honouring Holocaust hero Sir Nicholas Winton after a Jewish News campaign attracted more than 100,000 backers. Jewish Newsalso produces special editions of the paper highlighting pressing issues including mental health and Holocaust remembrance.
Easy access
In an age when news is readily accessible, Jewish News provides high-quality content free online and offline, removing any financial barriers to connecting people.
Voice of our community to wider society
The Jewish News team regularly appears on TV, radio and on the pages of the national press to comment on stories about the Jewish community. Easy access to the paper on the streets of London also means Jewish News provides an invaluable window into the community for the country at large.
We hope you agree all this is worth preserving.
