Smuggling tunnels at the border with Gaza are likely being destroyed, eye witnesses have said.
Eyewitnesses added that even though there are around 1400 tunnels, only 300 are used. Many of these tunnels have not been affected by machines used to destroy them since they are internally lined with wood. Other tunnels have been dug in a way to resist attempts at destroying them.
Some sources have said that the destruction is being carried out in conformance with a deal between Egypt and Gaza to destroy all tunnels which Palestinians have failed to control
An official source said that tunnels accessed from houses in Rafah will be destroyed. These tunnels, he said, have been the hardest to shut due to their location in residential areas.
In mid August, Israel killed 5 Egyptian soldiers while pursuing Palestinian militants who had killed 8 Israelis after infiltrating Israel from Sinai. The inflitrators, according to reports, were not sent by Hamas which controls the Gaza Strip, but rather by a rival Palestinian faction. Egypt has vowed to tighten its control of the border area, and has launched a campaign in recent weeks to root out terrorists suspected of residing in the peninsula.
Translated from the Arabic Edition
