(Bloomberg) -- Israel is embedding new technology to detect militants tunneling into its territory from Lebanon, according to military spokesman Lieutenant-Colonel Jonathan Conricus.
The military has begun drilling to place underground sensors that can detect seismic activity and acoustic noises, he said on a conference call with reporters. It has notified United Nations forces stationed in Lebanon.
Israel has been experimenting with the technology in the border area, and it has now been deemed ready for operational use. The decision to deploy at this time isn't related to any new intelligence information, he said.
Israel said a year ago it had discovered and disabled six cross-border infiltration corridors dug from Lebanon by Iran-backed Hezbollah militants and that it was monitoring several locations where underground passages had yet to cross into Israeli territory. The current assessment is that there are no tunnels that cross the border at this time, according to Conricus.
The system being installed is specifically tailored to the type of ground along the northern border. Unlike the barrier between Israel and Gaza, the system in the north doesn't include an underground wall.
The work being done at this time is the first stage of the project, Conricus said. The timetable for the project may be affected in part by availability of funding.
To contact the reporter on this story: Alisa Odenheimer in Jerusalem at aodenheimer@bloomberg.net
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Shaji Mathew at shajimathew@bloomberg.net, Brian Wingfield, Paul Abelsky
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