Israel’s army says destroying Hamas means destroying a tunnel network that stretches hundreds of miles.
The of Israel’s offensive in the has begun, with Israel starting to move troops and armored vehicles over the border into the Palestinian territory.
But much of the war between and Hamas, which governs Gaza, may be fought not on the territory’s streets, but instead underneath them — where Hamas is believed to have built an elaborate network of tunnels, and where the militant group is also hiding hostages.
Israel says it’s hitting hundreds of underground targets as it aims to eliminate Hamas in the labyrinth of passages, shafts and rooms believed to stretch more than 300 miles and possibly to a depth of more than 200 feet. Nicknamed the „Gaza Metro,“ Israel claims the underground maze is where Hamas plans and carries out attacks.
„They’re pivotal for anything that Hamas has planned to do,“ said Joel Raskin, an expert on Gaza’s tunnels who has studied their evolution over half a century.
