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Will Egypt Work with Israel to Destroy the Smuggling Tunnels into Gaza?

(Commentary) Jonathan Schanzer - The Israelis have requested that the Egyptian military evacuate from the Gaza-Egyptian border. The Israelis don't want any Egyptians caught in the crossfire as they battle Hamas on Gaza's southern border. Israelis will soon begin to discover tunnels connecting Gaza to the Sinai Peninsula. There may be dozens of them. Despite some early Sisi regime successes in dismantling those tunnels (including by flooding them), the Gaza-Sinai border has become a major zone for Hamas smuggling activity. In recent years, these tunnels have also enabled Hamas leaders and fighters to come and go as they please. This is how Hamas was able to re-arm and replenish after multiple rounds of fighting over the years, and how Hamas fighters have been able to get training from the outside. The Sisi regime would be content to destroy Hamas because of its longstanding connection to the Muslim Brotherhood. But the Sinai Bedouins have a lucrative system of smuggling and the Egyptian military has been incentivized to turn a blind eye to their activities. The writer is senior vice president for research at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies.
2023-12-29 00:00:00
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