• Military Menu                       

• Introduction
• Systems
• Facilities
• Agencies
• Industry
• Operations
• Countries
• Hot Documents
• News
• Reports
• Policy
• Budget
• Congress
• Links

• WMD
• Intelligence
• Homeland Security
• Space

Gaza Tunnels

Chinese cadre always bear in mind Chairman Mao's teaching, "Dig tunnels deep, store grain everywhere, and never seek hegemony". Tunneling was indeed a main feature of Chinese war preparations. Starting in the late 1960s, millions of volunteers spent nearly a decade building the subterranean metropolis, haunted by fear of a Soviet nuclear attack and whipped into frenzied labor by Mao`s order: to "Dig tunnels deep". The labyrinth, which extends for hundreds of miles in Beiking , is now used for strategic and commercial purposes.

To counter the immense technological advantage held by U.S. and allied forces during the Vietnam Conflict, the Viet Cong developed an extensive network of underground tunnel complexes. From these tunnels, which were concentrated mostly around Cu Chi but spread as far as the outskirts of Saigon, the enemy could effectively ambush American forces and then safely vanish underfoot. The tunnels became so highly developed that they eventually contained armories, hospitals, mess halls, manufacturing centers, and storage facilities. Some complexes ranged up to 40 miles long; the Cu Chi tunnel complex contained 130 miles of passageways.

Having begun construction during their fight for independence against the French, the Vietnamese had incorporated a number of unique, battle-tested design features in their tunnels. They were made with minimal breadths with angled walls and were virtually impassable by most Westerners. Detection was difficult; airshafts were camouflaged and entryways disguised by filled wells dropping 50 feet. There were a variety of tunnel types: squad-size tunnels generally were less than 6-feet deep and 100-feet long; company-size tunnels were wider but not extensively compartmented; and battalion-size tunnels could burrow 50 feet underground and sometimes contain up to four different levels. Extensive booby-trapping made it nearly impossible for American troops to extricate the enemy from their impregnable safe-havens that allowed them to withstand intense aerial bombardment—even by crater-making B-52 bombs.

“The North Koreans are like mole people,” Dave Maxwell, a former Army colonel who fought in the Korea war and is now part of an educational organization on Korea, told NPR. In 2001, Donald Rumsfeld called North Koreans “world class tunnelers.” Maxwell claims the country has an extensive underground network of 5,000 tunnels, many built far below the surface to be safe from aerial attacks. In the unlikely scenario of invasion, attacking soldiers would have to fight not only in the air and on the ground, but below ground-level, too.

Hamas, and other radical terror organizations in the Gaza Strip, have invested heavily in the tunnel industry, often at the cost of civilian rehabilitation. In the years since the 2014 Operation Protective Edge, Hamas’ civilian affairs budget has decreased, while its military budget has steadily grown, increasing from 15% of the annual budget in 2014 to 55% in 2016. It is estimated that Hamas has invested over $150 million in its tunnel building activities, while also endangering the many Gazans who engage in this dangerous work. The chosen locations of these tunnels further demonstrate Hamas' disregard for human life - tunnels are often built under civilian infrastructure in Gaza and end within close proximity of Israeli civilian towns, intentionally endangering both Israeli and Gazan civilians.

Gaza has been transformed into another city – a “city of tunnels”. An estimated 7,000 Gazans scratch an insecure living by working in the tunnels, stretching from southern Gaza into Egypt. The network of tunnels, estimates numbering over 500, is an essential prop to Gazan business. All crossings into Gaza have been blocked off since 2007, which means access to food and fuel is difficult. Selling basic goods has become a great way for people to earn a living and, for some, to become very wealthy. The smuggling tunnels of the besieged Gaza Strip now make up a key route that provides the residents with essential amenities. One of the ways in which Gazans have challenged the blockade is by digging underground tunnels between the Egypt-Gaza borders, in order to smuggle basic goods.

The Hamas tunnel industry used to be a well-known conduit for smuggling weapons, goods, funds and even terrorists into the Gaza Strip, mostly from the Sinai Peninsula in Egypt. But the smuggling tunnels have been largely closed by Egypt. Now Hamas and the other terror organizations in Gaza are using their tunneling know-how and resources for a far more sinister purpose: terrorist attacks on Israeli territory. The terror tunnels are far more sophisticated. They are much longer, deeper and more difficult to uncover. They are well-equipped with electrical and communication devices. Terror tunnels can take a year or more to complete and require significant financial resources, engineering knowledge, manpower and supplies (a single tunnel can require up to 500 tons of concrete).

Metro systems have been introduced in many international cities worldwide. These systems have limited seating and several doors on each side of the carriage. This design allows a high capacity with a larger number of standing passengers and faster times for passengers to move in and out of the carriages, reducing station dwell times. These metro systems operate in higher density cities in inner metropolitan areas and rely on interchanges with suburban rail systems to serve commuters from further afield.

A study for the Development of a Medium-term Transportation Program for an Economy in Transition: The Palestinian Case" presented at the Palestinian Conference for Development and Reconstruction in the West Bank. March 14-15, 2006 found that 3 end stations were optimal for the origin and destination stations. Subsequent studies, such as El-Yazory, Kh. 2013. "A Proposal to Select "Metro" Route as a Public Transportation Mode in Gaza City Using (GIS) and Spatial Multi Criteria Decision Analysis (SMCDA)" showed that the total proposed metro line length is 51.75 Km. It coverrf all the Gaza Strip Governorates. with 57 metro stations chosen and distributed along the proposed metro route which is branched into two routes starting from Deir Albalah and reaching the two destinations in South Gaza. For construction and environmental considerations, the site should be selected where the water table level is deep. Of course, no such Metro was built.

The Israelis call the existing network of tunnels in Gaza "the Metro". In addition to the smuggling routes on the Egyptian border that are crucial for the movement of imports, Gaza's subterranean system serves additional functions. Gaza’s internal tunnel network is reportedly even more complex than cross-border routes and involves multiple branches that run under refugee camps in Khan Younis, Jabaliya, Shati and other densely populated areas. These hide weaponry and are designed for Hamas leadership to remain protected and mobile. Many of the tunnels provide passage under populated urban areas — to serve as a place where Hamas leaders and their weapons are shielded from potential air attacks — and on the eastern border, are designed for incursions into Israel. Hamas justifies its investment in the tunnels because the underground network is an “existential issue for the movement.”

In the 2012 OperationPillar of Defense, Israel reported it successfully targeted 140 of the estimated 500 smuggling tunnels in order to impair Hamas weapons smuggling capabilities and 66 tunnels used for terrorist operations. Hamas estimates Israel bombed 60% of the tunnels; some were damaged and quickly repaired, and others were flattened. Hamas’ estimate of 60% targeting of tunnels suggests that, by Hamas estimates, 300 tunnels used for terrorist operations were correctly identified and successfully targeted, as opposed to Israel’s total of 206 tunnels.