Egypt's Mubarak defends construction of Gaza barrier
Hamas has been trying to rally Arab and Muslim public opinion against the barrier, dubbing it the death wall.
By News Agencies Tags: Egypt Hosni Mubarak Gaza Israel newsEgypt's President Hosni Mubarak has defended an underground steel wall along the border with neighboring Gaza as necessary for his nation's security.
Speaking to senior police officers Sunday, Mubarak said Egypt began the barrier after a series of terrorist attack on tourist resorts in the Sinai peninsula neighboring Gaza.
The tunnels under the border are mainly used to supply the blockaded territories with food, medicine and consumer products.
Hamas is trying to rally Arab and Muslim public opinion against the barrier, dubbing it the death wall. Protesters have picketed Egyptian embassies in Lebanon and Jordan this month.
Mubarak lashed out at the protests as blackmail.
"Fortifications along our eastern border are a work of Egyptian sovereignty, and we refuse to enter into a debate with anyone," Mubarak said in a speech to mark the annual holiday of Police Day.
Government-owned newspapers had for days trumpeted the address as a "major speech."
Egypt has never explicitly confirmed it is building such a wall, but has repeatedly justified any steps to defend its border as a matter of "national security" and "sovereignty."
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they have clearly made their goal the death of Israel and placed life of palestinians as a secondary goal. The wall is to protect against Hamas, and will lead to the death of the Hamas government.
"Fortifications along our eastern border are a work of Egyptian sovereignty, and we refuse to enter into a debate with anyone," If this was an Egyptian sovereignty issue, then why a team of American, NOT EGYPTIAN, experts came to inspect the progress along the Gaza borders? Just last week Mubarak told a university audience that the government doesn't have enough money to fund their research, but he seems to have money to build a barrier that does not improve his national security because the whole Sinai Penensula can be reoccupied in 24 hours and because it is one open, large, and demilitarized piece of land with hardly any population centers!
Mubarak won't live forever. He would like his son to follow him as leader. He knows that this will not be possible unless he keeps America and Israel happy. Doing that same thing has kept Mubarak alive and in power for decades.