TEL AVIV – The U.S. is cosponsoring an Israeli-invented tunnel detection system that could prevent drug smugglers and illegal migrants from cross-border passage with Mexico, ISRAEL21c reported.
The technology, which is being heralded as the underground Iron Dome anti-missile defense system, was behind the IDF’s recent discovery of a 1.5 mile-long Hamas terror tunnel from Gaza and into Israeli territory.
The U.S. has earmarked $120 million over the next three years to help develop the system, the Financial Times reported.
Meanwhile, other anti-infiltration innovations include a counter-tunnel barrier along the Israel-Gaza border that “will also feature a state-of-the-art fence, complete with sensors, observation balloons, see-shoot systems, and intelligence gathering measures, as well as an underground wall.”
The U.S. has for years closely studied Israel’s border technology and security for its own border with Mexico. In the past, the Department of Homeland Security tested Israeli ground surveillance radars used to detect intruders before they reach the border.
Watch a video of the terror tunnel unearthed by the IDF here:
“The search for tunnels is at the top of our priority list … and we will not spare any efforts,” said Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon.
“Dealing with the phenomenon of tunnels is very complex, and the state of Israel is a world leader in this field. This battle demands from us persistence, creativity, and also responsibility and good judgment,” said Ya’alon.
During the 2014 war against Hamas, Israel found and destroyed more than 30 tunnels.
The Israeli government has been vocal about funding a tunnel detection system, investing more than $60 million in anti-tunnel technologies, but details about its technology have remained shrouded in mystery. According to Israeli daily Yedioth Aharonoth, purpose-built sensors collect information from the ground, including the length and location of the tunnel, and transmit it to control systems where advanced algorithms decipher the data.
The IDF, Shin Bet security agency and dozens of companies – including Iron Dome developers, Elbit Systems and Rafael Advanced Defense Systems — are said to be involved in assembling the system.