What Israel’s video of ‘Hamas tunnel’ under al-Shifa tells us

The Israeli military released a statement on Sunday saying it had found a Hamas tunnel shaft under Gaza’s al-Shifa Hospital. It also released footage of tunnels taken on November 17. Here is what the footage tells us:

What happened at al-Shifa?

On November 15, Israel launched an aggressive raid on Gaza’s largest medical complex, al-Shifa Hospital. Lasting for days, the raid was described by Israel as a “precise and targeted” operation to find an alleged underground tunnel system that led to a Hamas military control centre.

The allegation that Hamas was operating a control centre under the hospital was backed by Israeli and United States intelligence. Hamas and medical staff at al-Shifa have denied this allegation.

The Israeli military also released a 3D animated video on October 28, visualising an extensive network of tunnels that led to an elaborate, multi-storey control centre.

What Israel’s new tunnel video tells us

On Sunday, Israel announced that a 55-metre-long (180ft), 10-metre-deep (32ft) tunnel was found under the hospital.

The statement said that the tunnel was found “in the area of the hospital underneath a shed alongside a vehicle containing numerous weapons including RPGs [rocket-propelled grenades], explosives, and Kalashnikov rifles”.

The Israeli military also released a video that was recorded using two separate cameras on November 17. Spokesperson Daniel Hagari told reporters the entrance was uncovered when a military bulldozer knocked down the outside wall of the hospital, revealing a metallic spiral staircase that descended 10m (32ft) and led to a blast door, which is typically a metallic door with strong closures and hinges, designed to resist explosions. Such doors are usually found on facilities such as bomb shelters.

But military analyst Zoran Kusovac quoted a civil engineer from Gaza who suggested that the video is actually clips of two different tunnels spliced together.

The first section of the video shows the vertical shaft that goes down. It shows features such as load-bearing concrete columns. They seem to be built with regular civil engineering techniques, which would have required large and loud machines such as concrete mixers.

Was a Hamas control centre found under Gaza’s al-Shifa Hospital?

A control centre has not been found so far. Israeli troops have not yet tried to open the blast door at the end of the tunnel that they claim was under al-Shifa, fearing it could be booby-trapped, said Hagari.

Kusovac said that many different types of traps can be placed to prevent tunnel interceptions. Typically, they are improvised explosive devices (IEDs) connected with detonators that can be triggered by tripwire or even light or pressure. They detect the presence of a person entering the tunnel, setting off the explosive. “IEDs are basically like toys the big boys make. The more creative you are, the more successful you are,” said Kusovac.

If armies suspect the presence of such traps, typical regulations are to call explosion experts who arrive and assess the situation. Kusovac said that this usually takes a few hours, not over a day. This time delay brings the veracity of the Israeli military’s claims into question. “You say smoking gun, you get to it and then you don’t show the smoking gun,” he said.

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