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No Technology Can Substitute for an IDF Presence on the Gaza-Egyptian Border

(Jerusalem Institute for Strategy and Security) Prof. Hillel Frisch - Advocates of a hostage deal that would require the IDF to withdraw from the Philadelphi Corridor that runs the length of the Gaza-Egyptian border suggest that technological solutions can effectively prevent the border from once again becoming Hamas's military and economic lifeline. Static defenses are ineffective against a human adversary that observes, learns, adapts, and innovates. The now-iconic image of a lone tractor dismantling the supposedly impregnable security fence near Kibbutz Be'eri, followed by waves of terrorists, serves as a powerful refutation of the claims made by U.S. officials and former Israeli military leaders that technological solutions alone would suffice. History provides numerous examples to debunk this claim. During the Arab revolt in the late 1930s, the British erected a security fence along the Lebanese-Mandate border to prevent the smuggling of terrorists and arms. British intelligence soon reported that the fence's metal rods were being sold in Beirut markets. In 1973, the Bar-Lev Line failed, leading to the deaths of hundreds of Israeli soldiers. Static defenses equipped with sophisticated sensors and cameras require consistent maintenance. How will the IDF maintain an advanced fence along the Philadelphi Corridor after withdrawing from Gaza? How will the IDF prevent Hamas from shooting and destroying the sensors and cameras above ground? Moreover, how will new smuggling tunnels that run under the fence be detected? An Israeli withdrawal from the border, and certainly from Gaza as a whole, would constitute a victory for Hamas, electrifying the Arab world, emboldening Iran's proxies in Lebanon, Iraq, and Yemen, and severely weakening the U.S.-led coalition with Israel and presumed moderate Arab states. The image of the last Israeli tank crossing the destroyed fence back into Israel would symbolize the first decisive Arab victory in the history of the Arab-Israeli conflict. For all these reasons, there is no substitute for an IDF presence along the Gaza-Egyptian border. The writer is professor emeritus at Bar-Ilan University and former senior researcher at the Begin-Sadat (BESA) Center for Strategic Studies.
2024-09-05 00:00:00
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