Israel takes down another Gaza terror tunnel. Illustrative. By Joshua Spurlock
On Sunday, and for the second time in a month-and-a-half, the Israeli military discovered and dismantled a terror tunnel stretching from Gaza towards Israel. IDF Spokesman Lt. Col. Jonathan Conricus, in a video posted to Twitter, said the tunnel was being dug by Palestinian terrorist organizations and was “aimed to terror Israeli civilians and probably to abduct civilians into the Gaza Strip,” although he also assuaged concerns by posting to Twitter that there was “no immediate risk for Israeli civilians.”
The IDF used “new and advanced technologies” to uncover and take down the tunnel, according to Conricus—which was highlighted by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in comments about the tunnel on Sunday. “We are developing unprecedented pioneering technologies and we will continue on this path,” said the Israeli leader in comments published by his office. “The work is not yet finished but there is no doubt that we are on the right path and we will continue on it.”
The IDF Blog reported that the tunnel not only reached into Israeli territory from central Gaza, but it also was built with a noteworthy amount of details, including electricity. Former IDF spokesman and retired Lt. Col. Peter Lerner posted a video of the tunnel to Twitter and highlighted the cost of building terror tunnels.
“Notice the prefabricated cement elements making up the walls, and the ceiling. A tunnel cost is about 3 million dollars for 3 km. Imagine #Hamas instead of building attack tunnels, developed schools, sewage treatment plants & clinics,” tweeted Lerner.
Lt. Col. Conricus was quoted by the IDF Blog as saying that Israel does not want to escalate the situation with Hamas. Nonetheless, he also made clear Israel’s perspective on terror tunnels in his video posted to Twitter. Said Conricus, “Our message to the Hamas terrorist organization, which rules the Gaza Strip and is responsible for everything that happens there, is that the IDF will not tolerate any acts of aggression or violation of Israeli sovereignty.”
(By Joshua Spurlock, www.themideastupdate.com, December 10, 2017)