A Lebanese report raises a question that is increasingly being heard in the country: how much money has Hezbollah invested in tunnels in the south, and what would have happened if that money had been invested in the civilian economy?
According to an estimate by a military expert quoted on a local news website, if there were 2-3 tunnels in each of the approximately 60 villages affected in southern Lebanon, that would be a total of around 150 tunnels.
The cost of a small tunnel is estimated at $500,000 to $750,000, while a large, well-equipped tunnel – one that can hold dozens of fighters and weapons depots – is estimated to cost between $1 million and $1.5 million.
The bottom line is that the cost of the entire tunnel network is estimated at $100 to $150 million.