Israel erects underground, underwater barriers to thwart Hamas attacks
Israel’s sea and land barriers were built to stave off Hamas attacks and prevent tunnels from being dug.
Security tension prevails in the Gaza Strip between Hamas and Israel following the latest escalation round on Jan. 7. Israel responded to a Palestinian rocket and Molotov cocktails launched from Gaza into Israel earlier the same day. The Israeli air force struck Hamas positions and the Israeli government froze the transfer of the third installment of the Qatari financial grant to the Gaza Strip. The $150 million grant aims to settle the salaries of Gaza-based Palestinian Authority employees for six months under a Qatari-Israeli deal with Hamas reached in October 2018.
A week earlier, Israeli Channel 10 reported that the Israeli army announced the completion of the construction of the sea barrier off the beach of Zikim, on Gaza’s northern border. The barrier, which is 200 meters (656 feet) long and six meters (20 feet) high and took seven months to build, is fitted with sensors to detect the movement of Hamas infiltrators.
