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Tuesday, December 14, 2010     FOR YOUR EYES ONLY

Gaza's 1,500-tunnel smuggling network hit by business downturn

GAZA CITY — The Palestinian tunnel network linked to Egypt has seen a significant decline in smuggling this year, according to Palestinian sources. The sources cited Egyptian and Israeli security efforts as well as a decline in the Gaza economy.

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"There is less of a need for the smuggled goods, and the luxury goods are out of the people's reach," a Palestinian source said.

The sources said smugglers have left idle most of the 1,500 tunnels that span the Gaza-Egypt border. They said many of the tunnels were too expensive to maintain amid the drop in prices for smuggled goods.


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Hamas has overseen the tunnel industry, once said to employ 30,000 people. The sources said about half of the tunnels have come under Hamas control.

"Some of the tunnels, particularly those for weapons and fuel smuggling, are doing very well, and they are controlled mostly by Hamas," the source said. "Most of the other tunnels have closed."

The sources said Egypt's project to build an underground steel barrier threatened about 60 percent of the Gaza tunnels. They said the barrier would be filled with sensors that could detect and destroy tunnels.

Palestinian smugglers, who have sought to export goods to Egypt, also suspended construction of additional tunnels. The sources said the smugglers did not expect construction to resume until at least 2011.

The sources said thousands of workers were laid off from the tunnel industry this year. They said thousands of other workers underwent a severe salary cut and now receive no more than $20 per day, one-fifth of the rate in 2008.



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