Israel finally admitted Tuesday that it pumped seawater into Hamas tunnels to try to dismantle the terror group’s underground network in Gaza – a move the US has warned could endanger the hostages.
After more than a month of refusing to comment on reports that the Israel Defense Forces flooded Hamas tunnels using water from the Mediterranean Sea, Israeli officials finally admitted they used the tactic.
“The IDF has implemented new capabilities during the war, with the aim of neutralizing underground terrorist infrastructure, including by pumping large amounts of water into it,” the Israeli army said in a statement at X.
“This is an important tool in the fight against the threat of the underground terrorist infrastructure of Hamas,” the IDF added.
US officials have expressed concern over the strategy, warning that it could endanger the lives of the more than 100 hostages still being held by Hamas.
It is unclear if any hostages are still in the tunnel.
Experts have also warned of the possible impact that pumping seawater underground could have on Gaza’s limited supply of clean water, as well as possibly contaminating the soil with hazardous materials from Hamas weapons hidden in the tunnels.
The IDF confirmed Tuesday that it used water from the Mediterranean Sea to flood parts of Hamas’ 300-mile tunnel network. Getty Images Israel said it completed a thorough analysis of an area before choosing to flood its tunnels, to avoid water pollution. AP Tactics flooding the tunnel was first reported in December, but the IDF refused to confirm it. AP
The method was implemented with the help of the Israeli Ministry of Defense and was used only if appropriate after soldiers studied the land and water systems in the area, according to the IDF.
The flooding strategy was first discovered in December after a Wall Street Journal report on the construction of seven IDF pumps in northern Gaza.
Israeli officials remained skeptical of reporters’ questions about the pumping, with IDF chief of staff Lt. General Herzl Halevi refused to confirm the flooding tactic at the time, only calling it “a good idea.”
The IDF said it was conducting a “professional and comprehensive” study in which the tunnels were flooded to ensure groundwater in Gaza was not contaminated.
Despite the IDF advance into Gaza, much of Hamas’ underground network remains operational, officials said. AP
Despite using floods, explosives and precision airstrikes, Israel destroyed only about 20% to 40% of Hamas’ underground system estimated at more than 300 miles, US and Israeli officials told the Journal.
Last month, the IDF admitted it had discovered 800 tunnels during its ground offensive in Gaza, with only 500 tunnels inoperable at the time.
US and Israeli officials estimate that more than half of Hamas’ tunnels across Gaza are still operational, with much of the so-called “Gaza Metro” still a mystery to the advancing IDF.
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
