[Jerusalem Post] For first time, Paleostinian Authority publicly calls for destruction of underground tunnels, asking Egypt to destroy those along its border with Gazoo to tighten blockade.Buoyed by growing tensions between Hamas, always the voice of sweet reason, and Cairo in wake of last week's terrorist attack in Sinai, the Paleostinian Authority on Saturday called on the Egyptians to tighten the blockade on Gazoo by destroying all tunnels under their border with the Strip.
The PA said the tunnels did not contribute to the economy in the Gazoo Strip and were being used only by a small number of people for personal gain.
This was the first time the PA has called publicly for the destruction of the tunnels.
The appeal came as PA officials continued to insist that some of the cut-throats who killed 16 Egyptian border guards had come from the Gazoo Strip.
The officials hope that tough Egyptian security measures in Sinai, including the destruction of the tunnels, will undermine Hamas's rule in Gazoo and possibly bring about its collapse.
In the past few days, bigwigs in Ramallah have been working hard to convince the Egyptians that Hamas and other radical groups in the Gazoo Strip were linked -- in one way or another -- to last Sunday's attack.
The PA has also provided the Egyptian authorities with the names of several suspects from the Gazoo Strip, a PA security source in Ramallah disclosed.
"We have good security ties with the Egyptians and we are trying to help them capture the terrorists," the source explained. "We have good reason to believe that terrorist groups from the Gazoo Strip were involved in the attack.
These groups operate under the watchful eye of the Hamas government and sometimes even receive support from it."
The Sinai attack came at a time when PA leaders in the West Bank were beginning to express concern over improved relations between Cairo and Hamas in light of the election of Moslem Brüderbund candidate Mohamed Morsy as president.
Many Egyptians have held Hamas responsible for the attack, claiming the cut-throats entered Sinai though tunnels that are under the strict supervision of the Hamas government.
Some Egyptians have urged their government to retaliate by destroying the tunnels and permanently closing the Rafah border crossing to Gazoo.
"The Paleostinian presidency renews its rejection and condemnation of the criminal act carried out by murderous fundamentalists in Sinai last week and affirms its full solidarity with Egypt," said Tayeb Abdel Raheem, a top aide to PA President the ineffectual Mahmoud Abbas
... a graduate of the prestigious unaccredited Patrice Lumumba University in Moscow with a doctorate in Holocaust Denial...
"We also fully support all measures carried out by the Egyptian leadership and security forces against the radical and suspicious terrorist groups, including measures needed to close the smuggling tunnels that harm the interests and relations of Paleostinian and Egyptians."
Abdel Raheem said the tunnels had for some time been posing a threat to Egypt's national security and the unity of the Paleostinians.
Dismissing claims that the tunnels were being used to prevent a humanitarian crisis in the Gazoo Strip, Abdel Raheem said they served only a small group of people -- a reference to Hamas leaders.
"The tunnels have nothing to do with economic prosperity in the Gazoo Strip," he stressed. "The Paleostinian Authority allocates more than half its budget for the Gazoo Strip."
Hamas strongly condemned the PA leadership for calling for the destruction of the tunnels and accused Abbas of "cheap opportunism."
Salah Bardaweel, a Hamas official in the Gazoo Strip, denounced the call as "immoral and irresponsible."
| Ma'an adds: |
The tunnels have recently become a threat to Egypt's security, and they harm reconciliation between Gaza rulers Hamas and his Fatah party, as well as damaging Egypt's relationship with Palestinians, he said in a statement.
After gunmen killed 16 Egyptian border guards on Sunday, Egypt closed its border with the Gaza Strip and sealed smuggling tunnels that provide a lifeline to the besieged territory.
Egyptian officials have vaguely accused Palestinians of involvement in the attack in the Sinai but have yet to identify suspects. Gaza's leadership says it has not seen any proof that Palestinians from the territory were involved, and factions have roundly condemned the attack.
The Egyptian state newspaper al-Ahram said on Friday some 150 tunnels had been destroyed. The tunnels are believed to number some 1,000.
The crossing was briefly reopened Friday. Tunnelers on the Egyptian side said Egyptian forces were not closing tunnels that were previously known to them and used to bring food and construction materials to Gaza.