Egypt destroys smuggling tunnel in Rafah

Egypt's army on Wednesday destroyed a smuggling tunnel in the Rafah area of Sinai, security officials said. The tunnel was found in the home of a man identified only as H.Q, and was used to smuggle people to and from the Gaza Strip. Egypt destroyed the house after evacuating its residents. Meanwhile, Egyptian forces continued with a crack down on suspected militants in Sinai, destroying several homes, vehicles, and motorcycles in the city of Sheikh Zuweid. Suspected militant leader Mahmoud Fathi, 35, was detained in el-Arish. Egyptian forces have destroyed over 90 percent of smuggling tunnels under the Egypt-Gaza border, an official said in September. The tunnels have been a lifeline for the flow of food, clothing, building materials and fuel into the impoverished territory, which Israel has blockaded since 2006. After a July coup deposing president Mohamed Morsi, Egypt's army has repeatedly closed the Rafah border crossing with Gaza. The crossing has been the principal connection between Gaza's 1.8 million residents and the outside world since the imposition of an economic blockade by Israel beginning in 2007. Source: Maan