Senior IDF source: We knew Hamas wouldn't abandon their tunnel-building

"The residents of the South can sleep soundly, we are ready for every action from the other side."

By NOAM AMIR/MAARIV HASHAVUA
Updated: AUGUST 13, 2015 13:12
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One day after the Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) made public that it arrested a Hamas activist who revealed extensive information about the Islamist group's new tunnel building towards Israel, a senior source in the IDF's Gaza Division said that no one was surprised by the information and the division is ready for any scenario in its job to protect the Gaza border communities in the South.
During last summer's Operation Protective Edge, Hamas used its vast network of tunnels to launch attacks against IDF soldiers and Israeli citizens.
"It was known to us and we had no doubt that Hamas wouldn't abandon this [tunnel-building activity]," the source said.
The military source said the IDF was not standing idly while Hamas dug.
"There is a lot being done on the issue of tunnels. Many units are engaged that I won't talk about," he said.
"To the citizens of the South I say: You can sleep quietly. I don't sleep quietly but that is not my job exactly. We are ready for any action from the other side that may happen via the tunnels and we working 24 hours-a-day," he reassured. 
The official said that the IDF's efforts to safeguard the Israeli Gaza border communities takes a toll on the army in other areas such as training. 
"We are here as a bulwark on the border, we work every day and improve our position, and we are preparing for scenarios that we didn't imagine in the past, things that we didn't know during Operation Protective Edge," he said. 
Hamas has built primitive positions some 150 meters from the border and has improved its ability to observe the Israeli side uninterruptedly. The IDF military source said that Hamas is operating in the same manner that the IDF operated in the past but in the modern age it does not work to the Islamist group's advantage.  
"Hamas' line of opposition provides an excellent opportunity for us to learn about them. Just one year ago they fired an RPG at us right here but we couldn't react because they fired from a built up area with innocent civilians. But now that their positions are out in the open, there are 'addresses' that I can target and hit. And further, we see see them today, we see who they are, when they come, and we even can photograph their faces and have their names," the source said.