Defense Minister Ehud Barak ordered the IDF to close the crossings with Gaza Tuesday evening within minutes after a rocket attack was fired by Palestinian Authority terrorists in the region.
The homemade Kassam rocket was launched toward a kibbutz in the Eshkol Regional Council district and landed near the security barrier. No one was injured and no damage was reported in the attack.
The closure comes just a day after 42 truckloads of humanitarian aid supplies were delivered to Gaza through the crossings, which were opened despite sporadic Kassam rocket attacks over the past week. A single rocket was also launched against Israel from northern Gaza on Monday.
Foreign journalists are still not being allowed into the region despite numerous complaints to the Government Press Office. The ban, which has been in effect for more than two weeks, has lasted longer than any previous restriction placed on reporters' movements in Israel, including those during wartime.
Prime Minister Ehud Olmert justified the shutdown to journalists Tuesday during his visit to Washington D.C., "The reason the passages are closed is completely related to security matters… We didn't want to take responsibility for the safety of journalists passing through…"
The Prime Minister added that he had not read a letter sent to him last week by the heads of news organizations admonishing Israel and demanding that the ban be lifted.
"There are security situations in which certain restrictions are set for a short period and it doesn't mean the Israeli government is trying to hide something in the Gaza Strip. We are not doing anything in the Gaza Strip that we have to hide," he said.