A sponge bomb is a specialized device designed to seal the end of a tunnel. Small enough that it can be set by a single person, it is a non-explosive, chemical bomb that releases a burst of expanding foam that quickly hardens.

Development

The sponge bomb was developed by the

Israel Defense Forces The Israel Defense Forces (IDF; , ), alternatively referred to by the Hebrew-language acronym (), is the national military of the State of Israel. It consists of three service branches: the Israeli Ground Forces, the Israeli Air Force, and ...

(IDF) to address the use of tunnels by Hamas in Gaza.

Design

Housed in a plastic container, the bomb has a metal partition that separates two liquid reagents. Once the partition is removed, the liquids mix and react, causing them to rapidly expand and then solidify, creating a physical barrier blocking the tunnel. The device is either set at its target by an individual or thrown. In 2021, testing of sponge bombs was reportedly conducted by IDF in simulated tunnels. During initial testing of these bombs, the liquid emulsion was found to be hazardous to work with when mishandled – some Israeli soldiers lost their eyesight.

Historical perspective

This is not the first time that sticky foam has been used by a military force. Reportedly, the

U.S. Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines or simply the Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is responsible for conducting expeditionary ...

and the

U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of the United Stat ...

have used streams of foam as non-lethal tools for crowd control or restraint of hostile combatants.

References

External links

Military use of non-lethal foam (at 20 seconds into video)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sponge bomb Bombs of Israel Foams Tunnel warfare Tunnels in Palestine Gaza war Israeli inventions