Tel Aviv – The Israeli army announced Wednesday that it had uncovered nine tunnels between the Gaza Strip and Egypt in a sweep designed to prevent Palestinian militants from smuggling in the types of advanced weapons used by Hezbollah in the recent Lebanon conflict.
The incursion, which began Tuesday night, was Israel’s first along the border strip since withdrawing from Gaza last year. The Israeli military said it found seven completed smuggling tunnels, one more than 60 feet deep, and two others in their early stages. At least two Hamas fighters died during clashes with the troops near the Rafah border crossing.
Israel wants to avoid a repeat of its experience in southern Lebanon, where, in the eyes of many Israelis, too little was done over the years to prevent Hezbollah from building an impressive arsenal.
That war ended indecisively but felt like a defeat to many Israelis still angered at the nation’s political and military leaders.
“There will be no blind-eye policy in the face of the attempts to transform the Gaza Strip into south Lebanon,” Defense Minister Amir Peretz said Wednesday as tanks and troops operated along the border strip known as the Philadelphi corridor.
Israeli officials said Palestinian guerrillas have imported tons of arms and explosives into Gaza during the past year.
They assert that militant groups hope to counter Israel’s military edge by smuggling a range of arms, including advanced anti-tank missiles and possibly anti-aircraft weapons, through a network of tunnels between Gaza and Egypt.
The Israelis believe militant groups such as Hamas also have brought in 122-millimeter Grad rockets, which reach farther and pack a bigger punch than the homemade Kassams that militants have long fired into communities in southern Israel. Israeli intelligence officers said militants have launched at least four Grad-type rockets since spring.
