The months-long Russian war on Ukraine highlights the diversified use of tunnels and underground facilities by state and non-state actors, and confirms that this type of war tactic remains despite the steadily developing tunnel detection techniques.
This is what the Israeli journalist writer Daphne Richmond Barak sees - in an article for The Jerusalem Post - in which she tried to highlight the similarities and differences in the use of tunnels by the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) and Ukrainian fighters in their struggle with their enemies Israel and Russia. .
The writer pointed out that a country like Ukraine's use of tunnel networks for military purposes is unusual when viewed from a contemporary perspective of this ancient military tactic.
From Ukraine and Russia to Palestine
She said that the Ukrainian army uses tunnels and underground facilities, which are originally part of the infrastructure of cities, and did not dig them for military use in its battles against Russian forces, which enables Ukrainians to take advantage of the advantages of using tunnels in the war without having to dig them.
The tunnels were used by Ukrainian fighters to disrupt the Russian attack on Mariupol.
Ukrainian civilians and fighters coexisted at the underground Azovstal steel plant in Mariupol during the Russian army's siege of the city, an incident reminiscent of the notorious and dangerous Viet Cong tunnels in Vietnam used by Vietnamese villagers during the war with America.
On the other hand - and speaking to the writer - President Vladimir Putin manages the affairs of governance and war from a main headquarters built underground, similar to the American facilities built underground.
Ukraine does not have the capabilities to build this level of underground state facilities, but its underground tunnels and passages are used for the similar purpose of ensuring continued command and control.
The writer Barak said that what she described as the enemies of Israel - in reference to the Palestinian resistance movements - have built extensive networks of tunnels to be able to infiltrate "Israeli lands" and carry out attacks and confront Israeli capabilities by working underground.
Basic principles
She believed that there are 3 basic principles of tunnel warfare, the first of which can be summarized as the tunnel is just a tool, and once there is a tunnel or dug, it can be used for any purpose.
She gave an example of this by using Hamas in Gaza a tunnel to smuggle goods for the capture - or "kidnapping" as it puts it - of the Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit.
As for the second basic principle of tunnel warfare, it is that each actor in this field will use the terrain in line with his capabilities;
Hamas, for example, cannot build a huge Russian-style command and control facility underground.
Therefore, the use of tunnels by states is different from the use of tunnels by non-state actors.
She pointed to the need for the weaker parties to the conflict to use tunnels in asymmetric wars, in order to be able to operate in secret, away from the eyes of intelligence and surveillance and reconnaissance devices.
She said that for some parties, including Hamas and Hezbollah in Lebanon, the use of tunnels balances forces, and this is the reason for the continued popularity of tunnel warfare, as it is a factor that achieves a great balance of power in contemporary wars.
This principle is not limited to movements and organizations, but goes beyond it to wars that break out between countries, as is the case in the war between Russia and Ukraine, as the party that feels that it is in an unfavorable military situation uses tunnels, as Ukraine did in its current war.
The third and final principle of tunnel warfare is that the threats posed by underground passages and tunnels will not stop, and technology will not be able to change their impact much in the near future.
The writer claimed that media outlets indicate that Pakistan is digging tunnels - across its border with India - to reach Indian lands, despite India's powerful modern technology in the field of tunnel detection.
Hezbollah has also built a complex network of tunnels and bunkers in Lebanon, although digging hard rocks to build these tunnels takes a long time, and the possibility of discovering excavations is high.
Nevertheless, Hezbollah views the tunnels as an essential part of its strategy.
Barak concluded her article that anti-tunnel technology has improved significantly, but it is unlikely to provide a one-size-fits-all solution.
She expected that military tactics that depend on tunnels would maintain their attractiveness to the parties to the conflict, whether they are states or non-state actors.