The Popular Struggle Front (PSF) terrorist group in Gaza has called to immediately close the hundreds of smuggling tunnels connecting Gaza to the Sinai Peninsula in Egypt. The tunnels are dangerous and have caused dozens of death and exacerbated “social problems,” the group said.
Several dozen smugglers have been killed in the tunnels since the beginning of the year, mostly in tunnel collapses. The PSF announcement was made Thursday, the same day that a resident of Rafiah died, three days after suffering critical wounds when a fire swept a tunnel while he was inside.
The PSF called to focus on opening border crossings instead of using tunnels. Crossings between Israel and Gaza have often remained closed due to terrorist attacks on the Gaza belt area. Humanitarian shipments of food, fuel and medicine have been allowed through, but have sometimes been delayed by attacks on Gaza crossings.
The Rafiah crossing between Gaza and Egypt has remained closed since the Hamas takeover of Gaza, with one notable exception in early 2008, when Hamas blew down the wall between Gaza and Egypt, allowing hundreds of thousands of Gaza Arabs to enter northern Sinai.
Gaza smugglers have managed to make a profit off the near-complete closure of crossings to Gaza trade, and have become the only source of non-essential goods. The tunnels trade was originally considered illegal by the Hamas-led breakaway Palestinian Authority in Gaza, but has since been established in Hamas law. Smugglers pay taxes to the Hamas-led PA.
Besides expressing concern over the safety of smugglers, the PSF complained over “political, economic and social problems” caused by the tunnels. The complaint over “social problems” appeared to be a veiled reference to the frequency of drug smuggling via Rafiah tunnels. Several drug dealers have been captured by Gaza police in recent months.
The tunnels have been used to smuggle a wide variety of goods since borders were closed with the 2007 Hamas takeover. Among other things, smugglers have used the tunnels to import rare animals for Gaza zoos, motorcycles and foreign brides for Hamas terrorists.