Barak: Gaza op caused huge backlog in Egypt of arms meant for Hamas

Defense Minister Ehud Barak on Sunday said a large quantity of arms had piled up in Egypt en route to Gaza during Israel's recent offensive in the coastal strip.

Barak made the comments while updating the government on efforts to halt the smuggling of weapons to Gaza, one of Israel's aims in the 22-day campaign against Hamas.

He said that that Israel has informed Egypt of the build-up of weapons in its territory.

Meanwhile, a senior Hamas official said on Sunday that security measures aimed at stopping Palestinian groups from rearming would not stop the flow of weapons into Gaza.

"We will continue to get weapons into Gaza and the [West] Bank. Let nobody think we will surrender to measures," said Hamas representative in Lebanon Osama Hamdan during a speech in Beirut. He added that Palestinian militants had begun to restore their arsenal after Israel's cease-fire.

Last week, Shin Bet chief Yuval Diskin told the cabinet that Hamas would resume smuggling arms into Gaza within a few months, despite Israel's destruction of many tunnels used for this purpose in the offensive, code-named Operation Cast Lead.

Hamdan added: "Perhaps matters will get more difficult, but we are ready to ride out any difficulty ... so that the resistance continues." He said those who think sea, air or satellite monitoring can detect weapons flow through tunnels "are deluded."

Shortly before the hostilities ended in Gaza, the United States and Israel signed an agreement aimed at stopping the smuggling of weapons into the Strip.

The deal included measures to fight arms smuggling from Iran to Gaza, with the policing to take place throughout the route by which the arms reach Gaza, including patrols of the Persian Gulf, Sudan, and neighboring states.

On Friday, France said it would send a frigate to patrol international waters off the coast of the Gaza Strip as part of efforts to consolidate the cease-fire by preventing arms trafficking by sea.