Is Hamas' tunnel network still intact?
Hamas officials tell Al-Monitor that while Israel inflicted a blow to the tunnel network along the border, their main strategic tunnels are still operational.
Hamas’ military wing, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, demonstrated resilience against the Israeli army in the Gaza Strip in the latest war, and their officials say they still have the military capabilities to continue the fight.
The most important phase began during the second week of the war, on July 17, with the ground invasion that resulted in losses for both sides.
The progress of clashes in Gaza and the fierce fighting that ensued between al-Qassam fighters and the Israeli army showed that Hamas possessed a significant fighting capability on the ground. Once battles erupted on the outskirts of the Shajaiya, al-Tuffah, Khuza’a, and Beit Hanoun neighborhoods, the Israelis suffered a number of casualties, with soldiers and officers of elite brigades wounded or killed, armored vehicles destroyed and positions of special forces targeted with rockets, explosives and snipers.
The tunnels were a main strength that Hamas employed against the Israeli army, despite the latter’s preparation for this challenge, and its announcement that targeting those tunnels was one of the objectives of the ongoing war. Israel destroyed a large number of tunnels up until the end of the ground offensive on Aug. 5, particularly those located along the border.
