Last update - 01:55 02/11/2007
IDF finds 7 tunnels, explosives between Egypt, Gaza Strip
By Yuval Azoulay and Mijal Grinberg
Israeli security forces acting in and around the Gaza Strip over the past three days have uncovered several tunnels that served Palestinian militants in smuggling arms from Egypt, Israel Defense Forces sources told Haaretz.
The people of the northern Negev town of Sderot rushed to shelter at least four times yesterday, after Palestinian militants fired at least nine Qassam rockets that smashed in the region. No one was injured in the attacks. The Israel Air Force attacked two Qassam launchers in response in the northern Gaza Strip.
Additionally, the IDF killed four Palestinians in the course of military activity near the fence which separates Israel from the Gaza Strip. The army said the Palestinians were armed. The four Palestinians were killed in three separate incidents.
The first incident, which claimed the life of one Palestinian, occurred when the IDF engaged a detachment of Palestinian militants who fired eight mortar rounds at Israeli settlements near the northern section of the fence, the army said.
The second incident occurred in the southern region, after Golani troops identified an armed Palestinian approaching the fence and opened fire at him. The man was killed.
The third incident happened near the Erez Crossing, where IDF troops killed two armed Palestinians who approached the fence, the IDF said.
The tunnels ran from Gaza to Egypt through the Philadelphi Route. Some of the tunnels that the IDF had uncovered had electricity and lighting infrastructure, as well as ventilation systems, army sources said.
The IDF said the tunnels were used by Hamas to smuggle militants from Egypt into Gaza, as well as vice versa, and were also used to bring in weapons and explosives.
The army also found three explosive devices in the area, which were meant to target troops operating there. The task force, comprised of combatants from the Golani Brigade and the Combat Engineering Corps, proceeded to defuse the charges. The forces said they fired and hit two Palestinian gunmen while operating in the area.
An army official told Haaretz that the tunnels' exposure was made possible through cooperation with the Shin Bet security service.
One of the rockets that hit Sderot landed in the front yard of a home. The missiles did not explode. Two other rockets landed in open fields - one outside Sderot and another near Kibbutz Nir Am. No damage was reported.
On Wednesday, the town received its first armor-protected student bus station. Prior to the start of the school year, parents demanded that bus stations across the city be reinforced for protection against Qassam rocket attacks.
Meanwhile, IDF troops in the West Bank arrested a Palestinian youth yesterday at the Hawara checkpoint south of Nablus, after discovering four explosive devices among his possessions in a routine check.
In the initial investigation into the incident, the 16-year-old Palestinian confessed to having planned an attack against IDF soldiers and civilians. Border Police sappers detonated the explosives in a controlled explosion.
IDF special forces operating in Nablus arrested two wanted persons suspected of terrorist activity. One of the wanted men, Omar Issa from Hamas, was captured in a safe house with weapons in his possession. A special Border Police force arrested the other suspect from Tanzim.
Avi Issacharoff adds: Palestinian sources told Haaretz that the militants responsible for firing Qassam rockets at Israel from the Gaza Strip over the past few days belonged to several rival organizations. Among these organizations is the Fatah-affiliated Tanzim, who reportedly want to push Israel into knocking Hamas from power.
Other organizations involved in firing mortar rounds and rockets at Israel include the Islamic Jihad Movement in Palestine and activists from Hamas itself.
The militant organizations are believed to be acting to prevent the U.S.-sponsored Annapolis peace conference scheduled to take place later this month from materializing and possibly resulting in a breakthrough in negotiations between the Palestinian Authority and Israel.