Shabak (General Security Service) chief Yuval Diskin told the government ministers at the weekly Cabinet meeting that the "intensification of terror infrastructure in Gaza is a strategic problem which, if not treated properly, will result in a situation just like in Lebanon.”
"Tons of explosives and hundreds of weapons," Diskin said, "have been smuggled in recently through the Philadelphi Corridor.” That corridor, a strip between Egypt and Gaza that contains the Rafah Crossing, was abandoned by Israel during the Disengagement, against the protestation of IDF intelligence. In return, Egyptian and European Union guarantees were to have ensured that the border would remain controlled and free of weapons smuggling.
Few security experts expected the guarantees to act as effectively as the team of IDF anti-tunnel experts who discovered dozens of smuggling tunnels during its searches there.
“This is now a strategic problem,” Diskin said. “The Philadelphi Corridor has been breached… We don't have to wait three years to investigate.” His statement was a reference to Defense Minister Amir Peretz’s calls for an investigation into what led to the war in Lebanon and his statements claiming he was not informed of the gravity of the missile threat.
Diskin said that money for Hamas is also being smuggled from Egypt to Gaza, as well as expert terrorists. He suggested that the government reexamine its agreements with Egypt prior to the Gaza withdrawal, “which are ineffective in actuality under Egyptian monitoring."
With regard to Judea and Samaria, Diskin said that Hizbullah has already set up a widespread infrastructure there. "In Judea and Samaria, Hizbullah is smuggling large sums of money and encouraging terrorist attacks against Israel,” he said. “[Hizbullah chief Sheikh Hassan] Nasrallah is seen as a national hero and they are learning from him. They understand the power of the anti-tank missile, guerilla warfare and underground bunkers.”