Israel moves ahead on underground wall around Gaza

JERUSALEM: Israel is pushing ahead with a project to build a giant underground wall around the Gaza Strip to block tunnels that could be used for attacks, the army said yesterday.

The project comes after the government faced heavy criticism over Hamas’s use of tunnels in the 2014 Gaza war, with a state inquiry earlier this year accusing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and army top brass of being unprepared for the threat.

“In the coming months, we are going to accelerate the construction of the barrier,” Major General Eyal Zamir told journalists.

“We hope that construction will be complete in two years.”

Army radio reported that the wall, comprising concrete planks and sensors, will stretch some 64km.

It is expected to be some six metres high and 40 metres deep, and cost around three billion shekels (710 million euros, US$ 834 million).

Construction Minister Yoav Galant said the wall will be built in Israeli territory parallel to the border fence sealing off the Palestinian enclave run by Islamist movement Hamas.

“The fact that the work will be located in our sovereign territory rules out any justification for attacks against those working there,” Galant told army radio.

Attack tunnels were a key weapon for Hamas during the 2014 Gaza war. — AFP