HAMAS Smuggling Continues....

Weapons Smuggling From Gaza Renewed

Israeli Government Expresses Concern
By David Bedein, Middle East Correspondent
Published: Friday, January 23, 2009
Jerusalem  Assaf Shariv, the Israeli Consul in New York, told The Bulletin 
Thursday the Israeli government is extremely concerned that  Palestinian 
terror groups have started rebuilding the arms tunnels in Rafah. The 
tunnels, located along the Egyptian/Gaza border, are used to for smuggling 
purposes, and many of them were demolished by the Israeli Air Force (IAF) 
during the recent Israeli offensive.

A high-ranking security source told the Israeli Haaretz newspaper Hamas 
has started to rebuild the smuggling system along Philadelphi Road.

These are the greatest experts in the Middle East at digging tunnels, and 
they arent going to wait a single moment. Theyre now busy with propaganda 
trying to show the Palestinian street that they defeated the Israel 
Defense Forces (IDF), along with rebuilding the military and governmental 
system, the source said. To that end theyre going to need the tunnels to 
smuggle various types of equipment, and not only of a military nature.

Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert announced he had spoken with 
President Barack Obama about the renewed smuggling. Mr. Olmert told the 
Israeli media that he congratulated the president for his inauguration and 
had apprised the president of the situation in Gaza  and said that he 
hoped the efforts of Israel, Egypt, the U.S. and the European countries to 
prevent arms smuggling into Gaza would succeed.



David Bedein can be reached at bedein-W/[email protected]

http://www.thebulletin.us/articles/2009/01/23/news/world/doc4979707e524a0078358010.txt