Mati Tuchfeld: Bennett vs. Ya'alon: Who Tackled Terror Tunnels?

by Mati Tuchfeld

Channel 2 report backs Defense Minister Ya'alon's assertion that Israel has been working to combat Hamas terror tunnels for over a year, contrary to Naftali Bennett's claim that he initiated the plan to combat tunnels during Operation Protective Edge.

An IDF officer talks to journalists during a tour on July 25, 2014 in a tunnel used by Palestinian terrorists for cross-border attacks | Photo credit: EPA

Contrary to recent claims, Israeli authorities have known for a long time about the threat of terror tunnels, dug by Gaza terrorists for the purpose of carrying out attacks in Israel, and began confronting the threat in October 2013. 

Channel 2 news revealed over the weekend that despite what many currently believe, the tunnels did not take the Israeli military by surprise during the recent Operation Protective Edge in Gaza. According to Channel 2, the military began combating the tunnel phenomenon more than a year earlier. 

This information casts doubt on claims by Economy and Trade Minister Naftali Bennett, who claims that he initiated the plan to combat the tunnels during the operation. The report backs Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon's and his associates' assertion that Bennett's claims are in fact false. 

• In October 2013 the defense forces discovered the first cross-border tunnel dug by Hamas. On October 17, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu instructed the Israel Defense Forces to formulate a plan to combat the attack tunnels.

• A month later, Netanyahu visited the IDF Gaza Division and demanded a meeting on the topic of the tunnels. In that meeting it was first suggested that Israel dig a moat along the Gaza border to prevent terrorists from crossing into Israel underground. Later that same month, during a tour of the IDF Southern Command, Netanyahu warned that the proposed solutions were not adequate and instructed the relevant officials to come up with additional ideas. 

• On Feb. 9, 2014 security officials convened a meeting. At the conclusion of that meeting it was decided to begin action by drilling into the ground to locate the tunnels. A week later the prime minister convened the cabinet and briefed the ministers on the possibility that terrorists would try to infiltrate Israel through tunnels. 

• On March 12, while Netanyahu was visiting the U.S., the Israeli prime minister met with the heads of NASA and inquired whether the American space agency could offer any technological solutions to the tunnel problem. Ten days later, Netanyahu convened a security meeting in which he instructed defense officials to continue researching the issue. 

• During a cabinet meeting on March 26, Netanyahu instructed the authorities to continue to focus intelligence, operational and technological efforts on combating the tunnel threat. 

• On June 12, three Jewish teens were kidnapped in Gush Etzion. Two days later, the IDF launched Operation Brother's Keeper in Judea and Samaria. 

• On June 19, the first Hamas tunnel collapsed. According to a Gaza security official, the tunnel, located east of Gaza City, had been bombarded by Israeli jets and badly damaged. It caved in when five members of the Qassam Brigades -- Hamas' armed wing -- went inside, he said.

• On July 7, the cabinet announced the launch of Operation Protective Edge. The prime minister outlined the objectives of the operation, listing the obliteration of the tunnels as one of the key objectives. He instructed the military to complete the plan, already in motion, to locate the tunnels. Two days later, the IDF Southern Command presented Netanyahu with a military plan on combating tunnels. That day and the following day, Netanyahu spoke with world leaders -- including the presidents of the U.S. and Russia, the German chancellor, the British prime minister, the secretary-general of the U.N., the prime minister of Canada and others -- and told them that in order to eliminate the tunnel threat, Israel would have to launch a ground offensive in Gaza. 

• The following day, the cabinet convened again, and Netanyahu announced the launch of a ground operation involving the plan to eliminate the tunnels. 

• On July 15, the cabinet accepted an Egyptian cease-fire proposal. The prime minister and defense minister said that the aim of the operation was to combat rocket and mortar fire and terror tunnels. In Jerusalem, officials speculated that Hamas would not agree to the cease-fire but Netanyahu and Ya'alon, seeking international approval, agreed to it. According to diplomatic sources, even if Hamas had agreed to that cease-fire proposal, Israel would still have stipulated that the tunnel threat be eliminated as part of the agreement. 

• The cabinet meeting was held in the morning, and despite the decision to agree to a cease-fire Israeli troops were still preparing to launch a ground operation. That evening, Hamas rejected the proposal and Netanyahu instructed the military to step up the preparations for the ground offensive. The cabinet then authorized Netanyahu and Ya'alon to order the launch of the ground operation.

• Two days later, IDF troops entered the Gaza Strip. The following day, the cabinet authorizes Netanyahu and Ya'alon to expand the operation. On July 23, the cabinet convened to vote on a humanitarian cease-fire. During the meeting, Netanyahu announced that the efforts to destroy the tunnels were ongoing. 

• On July 27, the cabinet convened again. Defense officials informed the ministers that the plan to destroy the tunnels was on the verge of completion. The options presented at that meeting were to withdraw the troops from the Strip or to expand the operation and re-conquer the Strip. None of the ministers were in favor of the second option. On August 5, the operation was completed and Israeli forces withdrew from the Strip. 

Last week, Bennett told Channel 2 news that "when I initiated the operation, there were those who put on the breaks. When I pushed, there were those who stopped. When I voted in favor of the tunnel plan there were those who voted against, and wanted to declare a cease-fire." 

In response, Channel 2 military commentator Ronny Daniel said over the weekend that "[Bennett's] claims simply aren't true, to say the least." 

Channel 2 presenter Rina Matzliah also touched on the issue, saying that "there was no cabinet vote on the tunnel operation. Bennett is manipulating [the truth]." 

Bennett's office issued a statement saying that "Minister Bennett has already agreed to an investigation into the tunnel issue and to publicizing the transcripts from the meetings during Operation Protective Edge. He stands behind his initial statements. The question to which the Israeli public deserves an answer is whether there were people who were willing to end the operation without eliminating the tunnels."

Mati Tuchfeld

Source: http://www.israelhayom.com/site/newsletter_article.php?id=20277

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