(IDF) Under the 1993 Oslo Accords, the IDF retained control of a thin strip of land (100 meters in width) dividing the southern tip of the Gaza Strip from the Egyptian Sinai peninsula. After 1993, the Palestinians constructed a complex network of tunnels underneath the Egypt-Israel border in the Rafah area of the southern Gaza Strip to smuggle weapons, cigarettes, drugs, and people from Egypt into Gaza. The Rafah tunnels are typically dug inside residential homes, and are concealed under bathrooms, living rooms, and bedrooms. Hosting and maintaining smuggling tunnels can often become a family business that provides a primary source of income. While smuggling prices vary according to location and item, to smuggle a person costs $1,000. Weapons come from Egypt, Iraq, Sudan, and Libya.
2003-02-13 00:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive