Egypt

Egyptian army destroys major smuggling tunnel under Rafah borders

Military spokesperson Tamer al-Refaei said Monday that army troops discovered and destroyed a major underground tunnel between Egypt and Gaza strip south to Rafah city.

Refaei explained that the tunnel has been used by Takfiri factions in different trafficking operation cross the borders.

Egyptian security observers believe that the underground tunnels between Gaza and Sinai Peninsula are the main route that terrorists and weapons enter the peninsula, thus destabilizing North Sinai.

Egypt security authorities have destroyed many of these tunnels since the rule of former president Hosni Mubarak. But efforts intensified during Operation Eagle which started in 2011 to counter terrorism in northern Sinai.

For Gazans though, the tunnel network has been a lifeline for some 1.7 million Palestinians living in the strip, especially since the severe blockade that Israel imposed on Gaza in 2007.

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