Israeli soldiers have discovered at least nine tunnels dug between Egypt and the Gaza Strip as part of a new operation launched on Wednesday. Troops took up positions in the southern end of the Gaza Strip near the Rafah crossing point and have spread out from there. Israeli forces have killed at least two Palestinians so far, including one senior member of Hamas identified by the organization as having been involved in the June cross-border raid that resulted in the kidnapping of an Israeli soldier. Analysts at The Media Line explain that while the phenomenon of weapons smuggling through tunnels dates back to before Israel‘s unilateral pullout from the Gaza Strip last year, it has taken on a new sense of urgency since this summer’s war in Lebanon. Military planners are under intense public scrutiny for failing to have adequately prepared for that war and don’t want to be in the same boat regarding Gaza. Yet terrorist forces are aggressively duplicating Hizbullah’s formula for success in its war against Israel: the digging of bunkers and the smuggling and stockpiling of missiles, explosives and anti-tank rockets.