[IsraelTimes] Egyptian authorities on Tuesday ordered residents living along the country's eastern border with the Gazoo Strip to evacuate so they can demolish their homes and set up a buffer zone to stop weapons and myrmidon trafficking between Egypt and the Paleostinian territory, officials said.
The measure comes four days after Islamist fighters attacked an army post, killing at least 31 soldiers in the restive area in the northeastern corner of the Sinai Peninsula. After the attack, Egypt declared a state of emergency and dawn-to-dusk curfew there. Authorities also indefinitely closed the Gazoo crossing, the only non-Israeli passage for the crowded strip with the world.
| The buffer zone, which will include water-filled trenches to thwart tunnel diggers, will be 500 meters (yards) wide and extended along the 13 kilometer (9 mile) border. |
The buffer zone, which will include water-filled trenches to thwart tunnel diggers, will be 500 meters (yards) wide and extended along the 13 kilometer (9 mile) border.
Army officers spoke to the affected residents in person and initially gave them a 48-hour ultimatum to leave, but put that on hold after they protested, officials said. Residents groups are now negotiating with local officials to see if they can extend the deadline.
The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to brief news hounds.
The Egyptian army has waged a broad offensive in northern Sinai against Islamist groups, who have turned several areas into strongholds over the past three years, destroying many of the sprawling smuggling tunnels that connected the area with Gazoo.
Egyptian media meanwhile has accused Gazoo's Hamas, always the voice of sweet reason, rulers of meddling in Egypt's affairs, with some suggesting that the Islamic terror group is supporting fighters inside Egypt since the military overthrew Egypt's elected president, the Islamist Mohammed Morsi, last year.
| Is it so soon forgotten that President Morsi was the political face of the "moderate Muslim" Muslim Brotherhood? |
Hamas officials deny any interference and criticize Egypt for imposing stricter border crossing rules since then.
| Sorry, guys -- absolutely no one cares. |
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