Special to WorldTribune.com

GAZA CITY — The Hamas regime has again ordered the closure of
tunnels amid renewed floods in the Gaza Strip.

The regime said the estimated 1,200 smuggling tunnels, used for weapons and fuel, were closed on Jan. 31. Officials said the tunnels were expected to begin operating by Feb. 4 unless the rains resumed.

“There was a threat of tunnel collapse, which endangered workers,” an
official said.

This marked the second closure of the tunnels in less than a month. In
mid-January, Hamas suspended tunnel operations for at least a week amid the collapse of several underground passages in which three people were killed.

Human rights activists said 232 people were killed in tunnel collapses
over the last few years. They have appealed to Hamas to enforce safety
measures for tunnel operators and employees.

Hamas as well as Palestinian militias have used the tunnels for the
import of arms, fuel and other supplies from neighboring Egypt. Arms
smuggling was said to have accelerated in wake of the brief missile war with
Israel in November 2012.

  200 Hamas smuggling tunnels, 232 people killed in tunnel collapses, Floods force closure of 1, Palestinian militias