Tunnel warfare Tunnel warfare is a general name for the war being conducted in tunnel and other underground cavities . It often includes the construction of underground facilities in order to attack or defense , and the use of existing natural caves and artificial ( catacombs , city communications , etc . ) underground facilities for military purposes . Tunnels can be used to undermine fortification s and slip into territory , while it can strengthen a defense by creating the possibility of ambush , counterattack and the ability to transfer troops from one portion of the battleground to another unseen and protected . Also , tunnels can serve as the shelter of its troops and people from enemy attacks . It can be sometimes linked with urban warfare , as tunnels are often found in urban areas and cities , although urban warfare as a whole usually dominates any tunnel considerations . Tunnels , due to their nature , restrict fields of fire and thus any troops in a tunnel usually only have a few areas exposed to fire or sight at any one particular time . Also they can be part of an extensive labyrinth and have cul - de - sac s as well as reduced lighting that can create a closed - in night environment . Usage of tunnels in war . The origin of tunnel warfare in ancient warfare . Tunneling in order to mine enemy fortresses and make the walls crumble is an ancient military art that has been put in use all over the world . A famous mine made the walls of Kazan crumble , allowing the Russia ns to take it . The only countermeasure was to dig down , intercept the mine , and fight the advancing enemy soldiers underground . Sometimes the tunnels collapsed during the fighting , and both sides were buried alive . The oldest known sources about employing tunnels and trenches for guerrilla - like warfare are Roman . After the uprising in Germania the insurgent tribes soon started to change defence from only local strongholds into utilising the advantage of wider terrain . Hidden trenches to assemble for surprise attacks were dug , connected via tunnels for secure fallback . In action often barriers were used to prevent the enemy from pursuing . Roman legion s entering the country soon learned to fear this warfare , as the ambushing of marching columns caused high casualties . Therefore they approached possibly fortified areas very carefully , giving time to evaluate , assemble troops and organize them . When the Romans were themselves on the defensive the large underground aqueduct system was utilised in the defence of Rome , as well as to evacuate fleeing leaders . The use of tunnels as a means of guerrilla - like warfare against the Roman Empire was also a common practice of the Jewish rebels in Judea during the Bar Kokhba revolt ( 132 – 136 AD ) . With time the Romans understood that efforts should be made to expose these tunnels . Once an entrance was discovered fire was lit , either smoking out the rebels or suffocating them to death . Medieval warfare . Tunneling was used throughout the world in the medieval period . Often they connected fortifications , towns , villages , religious and political buildings . They were used for supply , communication and as escape routes . A particular use of tunneling was in mining , where tunnels , braced with timber supports , were dug under the fortifications of besieged castles or towns , which when fired would collapse , bringing down the overlying wall . Modern warfare . Increased firepower that came with the use of gunpowder , cordite and dynamite made above ground fortifications very expensive if they should withstand any attack . Fortifications were covered with earth and finally they were built totally underground to protect crews and ammunition . For the purpose of firing , artillery and machine gun emplacements had loophole s . Such a tunnel fortress was difficult to enter and inside there was no room for the attackers to hide from gunfire and explosives . On the other hand poison gas proved to have a devastating effect . In trench warfare with heavily fortified strongholds , the tactic of digging and mining the enemy positions was used in the American Civil War during the Siege of Petersburg and the Russo - Japanese War during the Siege of Port Arthur . Extensive mining warfare was conducted by German , French , British and Australian troops on the Western Front during World War I , where the largely static frontlines created favourable conditions for mining . The largest mining operations were conducted in the Battle of Messines , where specialist Royal Engineer tunnelling companies placed 22 mines under German lines . 19 were eventually exploded , killing about 10 , 000 German soldiers . Underground attacks especially broke the morale of the enemy if he was surprised in his secure positions . However , the huge craters that are the results of mining enemy positions could be obstacles during an advance , as was found at Petersburg Battle of the Crater and the Somme . Tunnels built to secure frontline supply were built in several places on the Western Front . On the Eastern Front , the successful Brusilov Offensive employed tunnel / trenches to allow the Russian troops to start the initial assault very close to the Austrian trenches . During World War II , the rapid transit systems that existed in many cities became another military consideration . The lessons of these battles led to the construction of even bigger systems of defence underground , like the Maginot line or the Westwall with their own infrastructures . North Korea , it has been claimed , has prepared several transport tunnels with a capacity 10 , 000 troops per hour for a possible invasion of South Korea . This melds the defensive tunnel warfare with mobile warfare . The term tunnel war or tunnel warfare ( 地道战 ) was first used for the guerrilla tactic employed by the Chinese in the Second Sino - Japanese War . The tunnel systems were fast and easy to construct and enabled a small force to successfully fight superior enemies . Tunnel war usage . Tunneling in the World War I . On the Western Front during the First World War , the military employed specialist miners to dig tunnels under No Man ' s Land . The main objective was to place mines beneath enemy defensive positions . When it was detonated , the explosion would destroy that section of the trench . The infantry would then advance towards the enemy front - line hoping to take advantage of the confusion that followed the explosion of an underground mine . It could take as long as a year to dig a tunnel and place a mine . As well as digging their own tunnels , the miners had to listen out for enemy tunnellers . On occasions miners accidentally dug into the opposing side ' s tunnel and an underground fight took place . When an enemy ' s tunnel was found it was usually destroyed by placing an explosive charge inside . At the beginning of the Somme offensive , the British denoted two mines that contained 24 tons of explosives . Another 91 , 111 lb . mine at Spanbroekmolen created a hole that afterwards measured 430 ft . from rim to rim . Now known as the Pool of Peace , it is large enough to house a 40 ft . deep lake . In January , 1917 , General Sir Herbert Plumer , gave orders for 20 mines to be placed under German lines at Messines . Over the next five months more than 8 , 000 metres of tunnel were dug and 600 tons of explosive were placed in position . Simultaneous explosion of the mines took place at 3 . 10 on 7 June . The blast killed an estimated 10 , 000 soldiers and was so loud it was heard in London . Sino - Japanese war in World War II . The Ranzhuang tunnel evolved in the course of fighting back Japanese ' s mopping - up for the people in the central area of Mainland China , Hebei province . During the Second Sino - Japanese war , the or local peasant resistance used tunnel war tactics against the Japanese ( and later Kuomingtang during Chinese Civil War ) . The tunnels were dug beneath the earth to cover the battlefield with numerous hidden gun holes to make a surprise attack . The holes and entrance usually were hidden beneath a straw mat inside a house , or down a well . This allowed flexible manoeuver or exit . However , the main disadvantages of tunnel war is that usually the Japanese could fill up the holes or pour water in to suffocate the resistance fighter inside the tunnels . This proved to be a major problem but was later solved by installing filters that would consume the water and poisonous gases . It is said that there were even women and children who voluntarily fought in the tunnels . This is a famous military facility in China due to the movie Tunnel War based on the stories happened during fighting Japanese in the tunnel . After the success of this war movie , more art pieces were produced and adapted in the same setting . After the war , the Ranzhuang tunnel site ranked among key heritage preservation unit in China , Hebei province patriotism education base , national defense education base . Tens of thousands visitors were attracted each year . Most of the villagers were working in tourism service industry , an industry worth US $ 700 , 000 each year . Japan - U . S . war in World War II . The first to copy tunnel warfare were the Japan ese themselves . In the battles of the Western Pacific , they would maximize their capabilities by establishing a strong point defense , utilizing cave warfare . The first encounter of the US Marines with this new tactic was the island of Peleliu . The invading marines suffered twice as many casualties as on Tarawa , where the old Japanese tactic of defending the beach had been employed . The pinnacle of this form of defense , however , can be found on Iwo Jima , where the Japanese engineered the whole Mount Suribachi with many tunnels leading to defensive emplacements , or exits for quick counterattacks . Tunnel warfare by the Japanese forced the US Marines to adopt the " blowtorch and corkscrew " tactics to systematically flush out the Japanese defenders , one cave at a time . Korean War . In the Korean War , the tactic of tunnel warfare was employed by the Chinese forces themselves . " The Chinese resort to tunnel warfare , and the devastating losses to American soldiers , led to the sealing of tunnel entrances by United Nations Command . According to later prisoner of war interrogations , Chinese officers had killed a number of their own soldiers in the tunnels , because the latter had wished to dig their way out and surrender to the United Nations Command . " Vietnam War . When Vietnam became a French colony again after the Second World War , the Communistic Vietminh started to dig tunnels close to Saigon . After the French army left ( they were defeated at Dien Bien Phu ) the tunnels were maintained in case the plausible war with South - Vietnam would start . Ho Chi Minh , leader of North - Vietnam , ordered to expand the tunnels after the Americans entered the war between the North and the South . The tunnels would be used by the Liberation Front for the Liberation of South - Vietnam ( by the Americans shortened to Vietcom or VC , often pronounced as Vietcong ) . Systems of tunnels were not occupied temporarily for military purpose , but began to contain whole villages of people living permanently underground . The tunnels were a complete underworld , it was all there ; kitchens , hospitals , workshops , sleeping areas , communications , ammunition storage , even some entertainment . The tunnels eventually became a target for American forces because the enemy could hide in it and strike everywhere in the range of the tunnel complex ( hundreds of miles ) without a single warning and then disappear again . These tactics were also applied against the Chinese during the Sino - Vietnamese War . Palestine - Israel war . Sometimes the ongoing conflict between Israeli Army and Palestinians under the border of Gaza is called tunnel war . The Palestinians have used tunnels in three ways : 1 ) Tunnels have been dug from the area of the town of Rafiah in the Gaza Strip into the area of Rafiah in Egypt . These tunnels are used to smuggle a wide variety of material into the Gaza Strip - some for civilian use ( food , fuel etc . ) but also a large amount of military supplies - weapons , ammunition and other military equipment . 2 ) Tunnels have been dug under Israeli army positions , filled with explosives and exploded . 3 ) A small number of tunnels were dug under the Gaza - Israel border on order to infiltrate into Israel . In one such incident in 2006 a tunnel was dug to a hidden position behind an Israeli tank position . At night a Palestinian team came out of the tunnel and fired an anti - tank rocket at the tank , then charged it . The crew was taken by surprise , three Israelis were killed and one was captured and abducted through the tunnel back into Gaza . The smuggling tunnels are by far the most numerous type because they are economically lucrative for the diggers , who earn a commission both for the digging and for the materials that pass through their tunnel . The Israelis conduct routine counter - tunnel operations in which over the past ten years they have discovered and destroyed hundreds of tunnels of all types . Lebanon - Israeli War . In July 2006 , a group of Hezbollah fighters crossed from southern Lebanon into northern Israel killing three Israeli soldiers and abducting two , which started the Lebanon - Israeli war . Faced with Israeli ' s air attacks , Hezbollah needed to create a defensive system that would enable these rocket attacks to continue uninterrupted throughout any conflict with Israel . To do so they created an intricate system of tunnels and underground bunkers , anti - tank units , and explosive - ridden areas . The tunnel network infrastructure includes a 25 - km long tunnel , which is said to have received help from North Korea . Sarajevo tunnel . Between between May 1992 and November 1995 , during the Siege of Sarajevo and in the midst of the Bosnian War the Sarajevo Tunnel was constructed by the Bosnian Army in order to link the city of Sarajevo , which was entirely cut - off by Serbian forces , with the Bosnian - held territory on the other side of the Sarajevo Airport , an area controlled by the United Nations . The tunnel linked the Sarajevo neighbourhoods of Dobrinja and Butmir , allowing food , war supplies , and humanitarian aid to come into the city , and people to get out . The tunnel was one of the major ways of bypassing the international arms embargo and providing the city defenders with weaponry . Tunnels after war . Many of the famous war tunnels were later turned into tourist site due to their historic significance in wars . For example , Sarajevo tunnel is now converted into a war museum , with 20 meters of the original tunnel open for tourists visit . HebeiRanzhuang tunnel is also a famous war tourism site in China .