80% of the network of tunnels of the pro-Palestinian Hamas movement under the Gaza Strip are still functioning after weeks of Israeli efforts to destroy them. This is reported by The Wall Street Journal, according to UNN .
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Preventing Hamas from using the tunnels is at the heart of Israel's efforts to capture senior Hamas leaders and rescue Israeli hostages.
According to the Israelis, disabling the tunnels, which are 300 miles long, about half of the New York City subway system, will deprive Hamas of relatively safe storage of weapons and ammunition, places to hide militants, command and control centers for its leadership, and the ability to maneuver through the territory.
Israel has attempted to clear the tunnels using various methods, including installing pumps to flood them with water from the Mediterranean Sea, destroying the tunnels with air strikes and liquid explosives, searching with dogs and robots, destroying entrances, and raids by highly trained soldiers.
U.S. and Israeli officials have had difficulty accurately assessing the extent of tunnel damage, in part because they cannot say exactly how many kilometers of tunnels exist. Officials in both countries estimate that between 20% and 40% of the tunnels have been damaged or disabled, U.S. officials said, with most of them in northern Gaza.
