WSJ: One reason Israel was unprepared for a Hamas attack was its focus on "high tech"

Western media and analysts continue to debate how it is that Israeli intelligence failed to anticipate the Hamas attack. Experts interviewed by The Wall Street Journal believe that the reason is that Israel was preparing for a different war: its focus on military technology made it vulnerable to a low-tech ground attack.

Israel, based on its experience in previous wars in the Middle East, focused on repelling air attacks (the Iron Dome system to defeat short-range rockets and developing systems to combat longer-range rockets) and destroying underground tunnels from the Gaza Strip (the Obstacle system).

In addition, Israel spent three years and almost $1 billion to build an ultra-modern barrier with radars and sensors, about 64 km long, on the border with the Gaza Strip.

And this summer, the Israeli army began using artificial intelligence to plan air strikes.

Of course, this has led to less attention being paid to Israel's ground forces, and a reduction in the number of combat units and reservists, the WSJ's interlocutors say.

"Investing in technology means less money to spend on other issues," one of them said.

Therefore, the Israeli military was not prepared for an offensive with hang gliders and bulldozers.

As Reuters wrote the day before, Hamas' main striking force on Saturday was about a thousand well-trained militants, including airborne troops on hang gliders and paragliders.

The wall on Gaza's border with Israel was breached by a 400-member special group. At first, it was blown up, and then advanced units on motorcycles began to break through. They were assisted by bulldozers prepared in advance, after which saboteurs moved deeper into Israel in cars.

"Special forces attacked the first lines of Israeli defense, attacked soldiers sleeping in barracks, and seized bases and command headquarters south of Gaza," the agency described.

Another reason for Israel's unpreparedness for a Hamas attack is its focus on other areas, the WSJ writes.

The Israeli military has recently been focused on the West Bank and the threat from Lebanese Hezbollah. Some analysts believe that this was a deliberate move by Hamas to divert Israel's attention.

Background. Reuters wrote about this the day before: according to the agency, Hamas has been deliberately creating confidence in Israel over the past few years that it does not want a war, while Islamic Jihad and Lebanese Hezbollah have been diverting the attention of Israeli intelligence services.