Egypt to destroy 50 Sinai-Gaza tunnels within few days

Tunnels from Egypt to Gaza Residents of the besieged Gaza strip are going through a state of tension as they are worried about the Egyptian campaigned aimed at destroying the tunnels connecting the Gaza to Egypt's Sinai; the campaign that started early in August after 16 Egyptian border guards were killed in a militant attack on August 5, believed to be carried out by Jihadists coming or receiving arms through these tunnels.The tunnels that were destroyed so far led deepening the economic hardships suffered by the Gazans due to the Israeli siege, as the prices of some basic goods were considerably raised, while a lot of construction projects stopped due to shortage in materials.However, the Gazans might be set to face tougher times ahead as the Egyptian army is going to destroy 50 tunnels more in the coming few days, according to Palestinian security sources who were informed that the Egyptian army campaign is going to resume soon after it was halted for more than 30 days.
"The Egyptians allocated the sites of 50 tunnels they consider to be the most dangerous among the 2500 tunnels that connect Sinai to Gaza. They suppose these 50 tunnels are used in Jihadists' moves across the borders and in weapons trafficking as well," Palestinian security sources said to Arabstoday.
The relation between Hamas and the Islamist-led government in Egypt has been coming through ups and downs due to changes in the Egyptian policy regarding the border issues between the Hamas-ruled Gaza and Egypt.Angry comments against the Egyptian campaign to destroy the tunnels were attributed to prominent Hamas officials like Moussa Abu Marzouk, who was quoted as saying that "the tunnels destroyed during three months of the Muslim Brotherhood-affiliated President Mohammed Morsi's rule are more than the tunnels destroyed during five years of the rule of ousted president Hosni Mubarak, who was known of considering Hamas as enemy. But Abu Marzouk -who is the deputy head of Hamas' politburo-has denied these comments.
For his part, Hamas' official spokesperson Salah al-Bardaweel was quoted as saying that the Egyptians should offer Gaza an alternative to transport goods and materials if they would insist on destroying the tunnels.
Some reports suggested that 30 percent of the goods transported to Gaza are coming through the Sinai tunnels, while these tunnels have also made a good business for those responsible of digging and constructing them, as they gain considerable profit from the fees they take for letting goods and individuals pass through these tunnels.
Some protests have organised recently by residents of Gaza to call on Egypt to stop destroying the tunnels as this campaign directly affected their living conditions. One of these protests witnessed participation of hundreds of children.
The Egyptian army spokesperson announced recently that Egypt has destroyed only 31 tunnels out of 225 known to Egypt so far during the August campaign, however, other reports estimated the number of tunnels at 1200, while Gazan sources say they are more than 2500.
Since Hosni Mubarak's era, the Egyptian intelligence has been taking responsibility of following up on the tunnels issue.
A report published earlier in the British newspaper, the Economist, suggested that the tunnels business has led to the rise of 800 millionaires in Egypt, which shows that destroying these tunnels would never be an easy mission as it would affect the interests of huge network of beneficiaries.Gaza's ministry of the national economy said last month that Gaza's imports were largely affected by the Egyptian army's campaign, as the imports entering Gaza have decreased by 45 percent in October due to the destruction of "dozens of tunnels" by the Egyptian army. Basic food supplies like wheat, rice, sugar and flour have been decreased by 31 percent.
The only legal way of transporting goods to Gaza is to pass it through the Kerem Shalom crossing between Sinai and Gaza, but the capacity of this crossing doesn't exceed 300 trucks a day.
The Hamas government in Gaza also said that most of the trucks crossing through Kerem Shalom are carrying construction materials used in the governmental projects, while the food supplies are usually transported through the tunnels.