REPORT: Egyptian army destroys 12 terror-tunnels along border with Gaza

 

Egypt has flooded a dozen tunnels along its border into the Sinai, where Egyptian security forces are fighting Islamic State-linked jihadists, after accusing Hamas of aiding and protecting them.

By i24news

 

Twelve tunnels along the Gaza-Sinai border have been discovered and destroyed by Egypt, the Turkish state-run Anadolu news agency reports.

The report cited Egyptian army spokesman Tamer al-Rifae as saying that all the tunnels that linked the coastal enclave to Egypt has been destroyed. Al-Rifae did not provide details of how the tunnels were destroyed, or when.

Gaza terror tunnel - Photo: IDF Spokesperson's Unit

Gaza terror tunnel – Photo: IDF Spokesperson’s Unith

The report comes nearly a month after four Palestinians were found dead in a smuggling tunnel linking Gaza and Egypt. Gazan officials accused the Egyptian military of flooding the tunnel.

Egypt had not confirmed the information, though it has destroyed hundreds of tunnels in the area, alleging they are used to transport arms and militants.

Hamas issued a report Monday saying that 21 members of its armed forces died during 2016 working on tunnel construction.  Many occurred when the tunnels collapsed.

Gazans use such tunnels to smuggle goods into the Palestinian enclave run by Islamist movement Hamas and under an Israeli blockade for a decade.

The border between Egypt and Gaza has also remained largely closed since the 2013 overthrow of Egyptian Islamist president Mohammed Morsi.

While the tunnels into Egypt have been used for smuggling, Gazan tunnels into Israel have been used for attacks, particularly in the 2014 war between the two sides.

Gazans allege Egypt has carried out work to flood the area along its border to destroy tunnels into the Sinai, where Egyptian security forces are also fighting Islamic State-linked jihadists.

 

View original i24news publication at:
http://www.i24news.tv/en/news/international/middle-east/134140-170102-egypt-destroys-12-gaza-tunnels-along-border-report