All of this is developing, but we are definitely getting a picture of what modern day urban warfare really means. This is a fascinating study, and these articles(4 total) give us a glimpse as to what is going with this.
The couple stories that jumped out at me, was the use of tunnels:
In another case, soldiers discovered a mannequin dressed like a soldier at the entrance to a home, Halamish said.Had soldiers entered the home, the mannequin would have exploded, collapsing the floor and causing the troops to fall into a tunnel, where Hamas men would have tried to abduct them.
And this one:
Unwilling to take Israel’s bait and come into the open, Hamas militants are fighting in civilian clothes; even the police have been ordered to take off their uniforms. The militants emerge from tunnels to shoot automatic weapons or antitank missiles, then disappear back inside, hoping to lure the Israeli soldiers with their fire.
Tunnel warfare is definitely a factor in this war, like I was talking about earlier. The entrapment technique is different, and certainly one to watch out for. Hamas wants to capture an IDF soldier bad. Although the IDF saw this coming a long time ago.
The Public Relations war is fascinating as well, and I posted earlier about some of the things they are doing to combat negative public opinion. And what is really interesting, and I do not have any figures to back this up, is if the IDF or the Israeli government has monetized their PR effort?
You might laugh, but I am always watching commercials on all of the news channels, with some Israeli group asking for donations. Where as the IDF or the government might not ask directly for money from private donors, support groups within Israel are asking. But for the government to take advantage of monetizing their online efforts with stuff like Google Adsense, would be very easy to do and would make them some money. Or for them to put donation buttons on everything government related would work too. We already know that Israel receives money from the US government, but this new angle on financing wars would be an interesting study. Like I said with Obama and his online campaign, the power of the internet can certainly be used by an individual or even a country, to rally support and bring in donations for the cause. The internet makes that process very easy to do.
But all speculation aside, the biggest benefit of a major PR campaign online, is to defeat the other side’s PR campaign. It is a war online, as well as on the ground, and there are no limits as to where this war is being fought. –Matt
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January 11, 2009
A Gaza War Full of Traps and Trickery
By STEVEN ERLANGER
JERUSALEM — The grinding urban battle unfolding in the densely populated Gaza Strip is a war of new tactics, quick adaptation and lethal tricks.
Hamas, with training from Iran and Hezbollah, has used the last two years to turn Gaza into a deadly maze of tunnels, booby traps and sophisticated roadside bombs. Weapons are hidden in mosques, schoolyards and civilian houses, and the leadership’s war room is a bunker beneath Gaza’s largest hospital, Israeli intelligence officials say.
Unwilling to take Israel’s bait and come into the open, Hamas militants are fighting in civilian clothes; even the police have been ordered to take off their uniforms. The militants emerge from tunnels to shoot automatic weapons or antitank missiles, then disappear back inside, hoping to lure the Israeli soldiers with their fire.