The system is being developed by a defense electronics company in conjunction with the Israeli Defense Ministry and is based on a series of sensors to detect any movement.
Israeli officials stepped up development of the system after last summer’s 50-day conflict with Hamas. Israeli authorities found 32 “attack tunnels” built by Hamas, with one even getting right under the border. In that instance, Hamas fighters were able to emerge from the tunnels inside Israel and ambush troops, with some succeeding in escaping back to Gaza.
The new system is being praised as the underground equivalent of the Iron Dome, the Israeli system that interdicts nearly 90 percent of rockets fired into populated areas.
The estimated cost of fully constructing the new system is $3.5 million per mile along the entire 35-mile border between Gaza and Israel.
