“There will probably be a lot of improvised explosive devices and a lot of booby traps. Ground assault is a truly strenuous activity,” US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said at a press conference.
According to Daphné RichemondBarak, an expert in underground warfare at Reichman University in Israel, Hamas could use the hostages as a human shield if Israel storms the tunnels.
“Hamas is very good at using human shields and could easily use this technique in the context of tunnels to trap Israeli, American and other hostages,” RichemondBarak said in an interview with BBC England.
In addition, the destruction of the tunnels could cause entire buildings to collapse, as already happened in 2021, according to the BBC. Another risk factor is that Hamas allows thousands of Israeli soldiers to enter the tunnels and then blow them up.
“They could just let the soldiers into the tunnel network and end up blowing everything up. They could kidnap.” [os soldados em ataques surpresa]. “You also have all the other risks, such as running out of oxygen, fighting the enemy oneonone, and rescuing injured soldiers becoming virtually impossible,” Barak said.
According to The Economist, the use of gases, even tear gas widely used in police operations is considered a war crime.