Egyptian police found 500 kg of explosives hidden in bags in central Sinai and bound for smuggling into Gaza, police sources said on Tuesday.

Egyptian police also destroyed with explosives one of the tunnels thought to be used for smuggling.

The TNT, covered in plastic sheeting, were concealed in a mountain area near Giddi, about 130 km west of the Egyptian-Israeli border, they said.

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Egyptian police found more than four tons of explosives in central Sinai last month and suspect that too was on its way to Palestinians in Gaza, they added.

Israel says smuggling across the Egyptian border is one of the main ways arms and ammunition reach Palestinians in Gaza.

Police found no one in or near the tunnel near the divided border town of Rafah but found signs that it had been used, an official police source said.

Militants regularly fired rockets across the Gaza Strip's border with Israel before a ceasefire on November 26 which ended a five-month-old Israel Defense Forces offensive in the territory.