The French news agency is reporting that head of Hamas has accused Egypt of trying to isolate Gaza where Hamas is in control. This, supposedly, is news.
Here are a few facts. First, the western border of the Gaza Strip is with Egypt. For years, the supplies needed in Gaza were brought across the border with Egypt. For the most part, these materials came through tunnels that were dug under the border. This allowed the smuggling of items into Gaza without having to pass through border checkpoints. Almost all of the weapons that Hamas uses and much of the daily needs of Gaza came through these tunnels. Second, when the Egyptian people ousted Mohammed Morsi from the presidency and installed president Sisi in his place, Hamas decided to help the Egyptian opposition. Hamas sent fighters and weapons through the tunnels for use by the militant opponents of the Sisi government. There have been a long list of attacks in Egypt against police and military targets, and most of those attacks have been in the region near the Gaza border. About three hundred have died in these attacks. Third, in an effort to stop the flow of aid from Hamas to the terrorist opponents of the Sisi government, Egypt tried to seal the border. Among other things, Egypt created a strip about half a mile wide on its side of the border and razed all structures in that area. This led to the discovery and destruction of a great many of the tunnels.
Months ago, the Egyptians started a new tactic. Egyptian equipment was brought in to dig a deep trench down the center of the buffer zone between Egypt and Gaza. It has been clear from the start that this trench was eventually to be filled with water from the Mediterranean Sea with the result that any remaining tunnels would be flooded with sea water and rendered unusable. The filling of the trench with water has now begun. Anyone who paid attention to the area would have known for months that this was coming.
Despite all this, the French news agency treats the whole matter as if it were something new. The Egyptians are trying to cut off the flow of weapons to the terrorists; that is what they have been doing for years now. It's nothing new. Nevertheless, the French report the story as if this is some effort to inflict harm on Gaza. It is a sad and ignorant world in which the French news agency reports a story in a way that is so far from reality.
Here are a few facts. First, the western border of the Gaza Strip is with Egypt. For years, the supplies needed in Gaza were brought across the border with Egypt. For the most part, these materials came through tunnels that were dug under the border. This allowed the smuggling of items into Gaza without having to pass through border checkpoints. Almost all of the weapons that Hamas uses and much of the daily needs of Gaza came through these tunnels. Second, when the Egyptian people ousted Mohammed Morsi from the presidency and installed president Sisi in his place, Hamas decided to help the Egyptian opposition. Hamas sent fighters and weapons through the tunnels for use by the militant opponents of the Sisi government. There have been a long list of attacks in Egypt against police and military targets, and most of those attacks have been in the region near the Gaza border. About three hundred have died in these attacks. Third, in an effort to stop the flow of aid from Hamas to the terrorist opponents of the Sisi government, Egypt tried to seal the border. Among other things, Egypt created a strip about half a mile wide on its side of the border and razed all structures in that area. This led to the discovery and destruction of a great many of the tunnels.
Months ago, the Egyptians started a new tactic. Egyptian equipment was brought in to dig a deep trench down the center of the buffer zone between Egypt and Gaza. It has been clear from the start that this trench was eventually to be filled with water from the Mediterranean Sea with the result that any remaining tunnels would be flooded with sea water and rendered unusable. The filling of the trench with water has now begun. Anyone who paid attention to the area would have known for months that this was coming.
Despite all this, the French news agency treats the whole matter as if it were something new. The Egyptians are trying to cut off the flow of weapons to the terrorists; that is what they have been doing for years now. It's nothing new. Nevertheless, the French report the story as if this is some effort to inflict harm on Gaza. It is a sad and ignorant world in which the French news agency reports a story in a way that is so far from reality.
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