Egypt to build Iron wall.. and gas tunnels to stop Gaza smugglers!

Egypt building iron wall on Gaza border to stop smuggling

By Avi Issacharoff, Haaretz Correspondent







Egypt has begun the construction of a massive iron wall along its border with the Gaza Strip, in a bid to shut down smuggling tunnels into the territory. The wall will be nine to 10 kilometers long, and will go 20 to 30 meters into the ground, Egyptian sources said. It will be impossible to cut or melt.

The new plan is the latest move by Egypt to step up its counter-smuggling efforts. Although some progress had been made, the smuggling market in Gaza still flourishes.

Egyptian forces demolish tunnels or fill them with gas almost every week, often with people still inside them, and Palestinian casualties in the tunnels have been steadily rising.
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Recently, Egypt examined several possibilities of blocking the tunnels, and joint American-Egyptian patrols have been seen in Rafah attempting to detect tunnels using underground sensors.

Construction of the wall has already begun. It will be made of enormous slates of steel, reaching deep into the ground. However, it is not expected to stem smuggling completely.

Several defense sources told Haaretz they believe that once captive soldier Gilad Shalit is released, Israel will have to re-examine the benefits of closing Gaza off. The closure has been undermined by the tunnel system, which provides not only munitions but food, cars, motorcycles, drugs, medicine and fuel, much more than what Israel allows into the Strip through the official border crossing.

The tunnels also allow people to cross in and out of the Strip, including terrorists who linked up with pro-Al-Qaida groups in Gaza and tried to carry out attacks in Egypt, defense sources said.

The smuggling industry is so institutionalized that tunnel operators purchase licenses from the Rafah municipality, allowing them to connect to electricity and water. Hamas has also been ensuring no children are employed in the tunnels, and is taxing all smuggled goods.

The Egyptians often intercept munitions before they can enter the Strip and have stepped up checks at internal roadblocks and checkpoints in the Sinai. Observers say mounting American pressure is in part responsible for increasing Egyptian efforts to combat the smugglers

www.haaretz.com...


How come i dont hear anything about this in the MSM? Not only are they building a iron wall and demolish the tunnels , but serious they are gassing the tunnels while smugglers are using it, every week!!
Ok it is for a reason, to stop terrorists from entering Egypt or to stop smugglers from smuggling weapons into Gaza, but where is Amnesty, Human Right watch, UN? about this gassing issue?
I wonder how this thread will evolve and when the bashing of Israel begin, i strongly suggest you refrain from that, but everybody is free to give their opinion.
My opinion/question is, why are the arabic brothers not more supportive for their Palestine brethren? Is this just an ally of the US doing everything to stop terrorist from comitting such attacks, i dont know...

[edit on 10-12-2009 by Foppezao]

Because no one really cares what happens to the Palestinians. They are used for political finger pointing and little else. Any one of the dozens of Arab states in the Middle East could accomidate many of them. It is not done for political reasons. Besides the the fact that the so called Palestinians are just Jordanian settlers that were re-named Palestiniants after the 1948 war of independance/Zionist land grab.

It is ok for Egypt to do things like this.

Think about it. Up to this point, they have had very little criticism for their role in what has happened to the Palestinians. In other words, the world doesn't care what Egypt does to the Palestinians.

With Israel it is a whole different ball game.

Originally posted by dashen
Because no one really cares what happens to the Palestinians. They are used for political finger pointing and little else. Any one of the dozens of Arab states in the Middle East could accomidate many of them. It is not done for political reasons. Besides the the fact that the so called Palestinians are just Jordanian settlers that were re-named Palestiniants after the 1948 war of independance/Zionist land grab.

I support a Palestinian state with East-Jerusalem as their capital, and although it wont be a good signal if too many Palestinians went abroad as asylum seekers/refugees/gold seekers.[perhaps a reason for Israel to continue buildings settlements on occupied territory.] Jordan Egypt[and Syria?] should know their history with the Palestinians and share [the burden of] the legacy of the middle east map since '4548.
It looks like the same story with the Kurds, everybody in the ME looks down on them but the blame for suppressing them is on Turkey..

[edit on 10-12-2009 by Foppezao]

Gassing tunnels and collapsing them with people in them on a weekly basis with the support of US troops none-the-less. I'm so sick of our countries leaders thinking any means justifies the ends. Where the hell is the media...every week I see news that should be making headlines and I realize why the powers that be control the media so tightly. If the truth was ever told to America, really told to the people...the people, even the sheep would become so enraged the PTB would need to run for their lives.

reply to post by Foppezao

How come i dont hear anything about this in the MSM?

Because Egypt doesn't rhyme with Israel and they can't make a case to make Egypt look evil like those big, bad Israelis.

My opinion/question is, why are the arabic brothers not more supportive for their Palestine brethren?

From my recollection, the Arabs don't view the Palestinians as their brothers. They're kinda like misfits. They're only worth defending when it could lead to the dissolution of Israel. Other than that, they're not really thought of or liked. They weren't kicked out of Jordan for nothing.

Originally posted by Foppezao
How come i dont hear anything about this in the MSM?

BBC reported it before Haaretz, they also provided links to American and Middle Eastern news agencies.

Not only are they building a iron wall and demolish the tunnels , but serious they are gassing the tunnels while smugglers are using it, every week!!

The gassing thing is not official. From what I've read off BBC, it is a wall designed to stop the near-surface tunnels.

Ok it is for a reason, to stop terrorists from entering Egypt or to stop smugglers from smuggling weapons into Gaza, but where is Amnesty, Human Right watch, UN? about this gassing issue?

HRW and the UN can't really do anything about it, US built a wall along Mexican border, will they get the blame too? Northern Ireland built one as well, will they be dragged to the Hague? Not likely.

I wonder how this thread will evolve and when the bashing of Israel begin, i strongly suggest you refrain from that, but everybody is free to give their opinion.

Any moment now...

My opinion/question is, why are the arabic brothers not more supportive for their Palestine brethren? Is this just an ally of the US doing everything to stop terrorist from comitting such attacks, i dont know...

A lot of the refusal to help Palestine is by using it as a poker chip. How can militant leaders or religious figures make threats about Israel if someone isn't suffering as an example? It gives them credibility in claiming Israel is an apartheid when Egypt and Jordan aren't willing to open up their borders. Part containment, part rhetoric.
It is surprising, but this is a wall supplied and co-designed by the US Engineer Corps. This is probably a "we'll do it if you close your eyes for a few seconds" thing.

Originally posted by ExPostFacto
Gassing tunnels and collapsing them with people in them on a weekly basis with the support of US troops none-the-less.

It isn't US troops, its the Engineering Corp who supplies the steel wall and installs it, after that, Egypt can do whatever its going to do. If that is collapsing tunnels or gassing them, it is on Egypt.

I'm so sick of our countries leaders thinking any means justifies the ends. Where the hell is the media...every week I see news that should be making headlines and I realize why the powers that be control the media so tightly. If the truth was ever told to America, really told to the people...the people, even the sheep would become so enraged the PTB would need to run for their lives.

As for media, here ya go BBC News

oh my god!
i can't believe what these evil Israelis are doing!
Now they're gassing Palestinians? they really are nazis!!!

Oh wait...
It's the EGYPTIANS!?!
Oh, well... I'm sure there's a logical explanation for this...
Move along people, nothing to see here...