Posted on 04/10/2008 1:55:56 AM PDT by maquiladora
AL-ARISH, Egypt (AFP) — Egypt has called in extra troops to reinforce its border with Gaza, a security official said, after Hamas threatened to repeat a January breach that saw hundreds of thousands of Palestinians stream across the frontier.
"Hundreds of central security forces have arrived at their headquarters in Al-Arish (northern Sinai) and are ready to be deployed in (the border town of) Rafah," the official told AFP.
"Reinforcements have come from Cairo and (the canal city of) Ismailiya," the official said, adding that police trucks have been stationed around the mountainous areas in Sinai.
On Tuesday, Khalil al-Hayya, a senior member of Hamas, the Islamist movement which controls the Gaza Strip, said that "all options are open to break the siege" by Israel.
"I expect that what will happen next will be greater than what happened before, not only against the Egyptian border, but against all the crossings," Hayya said.
The Egyptian foreign ministry slammed the statements as "unacceptable" and said any attempt to violate the sovereignty of Egypt would be dealt with seriously.
Israel has sealed off Gaza from all but vital goods since Hamas seized power last June, in a bid to halt rocket attacks from the territory and to put pressure on the Islamist-run government.
On Wednesday, gunbattles raged on the Gaza-Israel border, leaving two Israelis and one Palestinian dead, Israeli emergency services said.
Hamas has been negotiating with Egypt for weeks in a bid to reopen the Rafah crossing, the only gateway to Gaza that bypasses Israel.
On January 23, Palestinian militants demolished the border barricades between Gaza and Egypt, sending hundreds of thousands of Gazans flooding into Egypt to stock up on supplies.
Egyptian and Hamas forces resealed the frontier on February 4.
Ping.
Report: Egypt bars commercial trucks from Rafah
Published: 04.10.08, 11:56 / Israel News
Egypt barred large trucks from taking goods into the Sinai border town of Rafah on Thursday to remove any economic incentive for Palestinians to breach the Gaza-Egypt frontier, security sources said.
Egypt sent 1,200 security forces to Sinai from Cairo on Wednesday to reinforce the border following remarks by a leader of the Islamist movement Hamas that the border, which militants blasted open in January, could soon be breached again. (Reuters)
I just can’t help wondering when we send in US troops to help them secure their border./s
even the egyptians cannot stand the f’n pali muzzies....
the palis should all be sent to jordan ~ their true homeland!!!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.