EGYPTIAN ARMY DECLARES DESTRUCTION OF 22 TUNNELS ON GAZA BORDER

Cairo, 10 Jumadil Akhir 1436/30 March 2015 (MINA) – The Egyptian army revealed that it has destroyed 22 tunnels on the border with the Gaza Strip, in northern Sinai.

This brings the total number of tunnels destroyed since last February to 216, Middle East Monitor (MEMO) quoted by Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA) as reporting.

In a statement posted on the social networking website Facebook, General Mohammed Samir, the military spokesman, said: “The border guard’s forces were able, during the period between 20 and 27 March, to discover and destruct 22 new tunnels on the border in northern Sinai, north-east of the country.”

The military spokesman said, in a statement published on 21 March, that the Egyptian army had destroyed 194 tunnels on the border with Gaza Strip during the period from 1 February until 19 March 2015.

Since the overthrow of Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi in July 2013 and the subsequent attacks targeting security locations in the Sinai Peninsula close to the border with the Gaza Strip, the Egyptian authorities have tightened their security measures on land and sea borders with Gaza.

Since last October, the Egyptian authorities have been working to establish a buffer zone on the border with the Gaza Strip.(T/R05/R03)

Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA)