Hamas’ Clever Sense Unseen by Israeli and US Spies Tech – 9 hours ago

Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia – According to intelligence reports shared with the United States, Hamas members have been planning attacks on Israel for a long time.

They communicated via a telephone network built into a network of tunnels under Gaza for two years.

Telephone lines in the tunnels allow agents to communicate with each other in secret, meaning they cannot be tracked by Israeli intelligence officials.

During two years of planning, small cells operating in the tunnels used landline telephone lines to communicate and plan operations but remained idle until the time came to activate and summon hundreds of Hamas fighters to launch the Oct. 7 attack.

They avoided using computers or cellphones during the two-year period to avoid detection by Israeli or US intelligence, the sources said.

“There wasn’t much discussion and back and forth and coordination outside the immediate area,” said one source, quoted from CNNThursday (26/10/2023).

Intelligence sources that Israel shared with US officials revealed how Hamas concealed the planning of the operation through antiquated counter-intelligence measures such as holding planning meetings in person and avoiding digital communications whose signals could be traced in favor of landlines in tunnels.

This provides new insight into why Israel and the United States were so hit by Hamas attacks.

The US Office of the Director of National Intelligence declined to comment and the Israeli embassy in Washington did not respond to a request for comment.

CNN previously reported that a series of strategic warnings from US and Israeli intelligence agencies did not make officials from both countries anticipate the events of October 7.

The Israel Defense Forces colloquially refers to the tunnels built by Hamas over the past fifteen years as the “Gaza metro.”

The tunnels form a vast labyrinth used to store rockets and ammunition, and provide a way for militants to move unnoticed. The IDF also said it housed an important Hamas command and control center.

[Gambas:Video CNBC]

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