Egyptian police find explosives near Gaza border
Source: Reuters
(Updates throughout) By Yusri Mohamed EL-ARISH, Egypt, Feb 23 (Reuters) - Egyptian police found a tonne of explosives near the border with the Gaza Strip on Friday as part of a widening hunt for suspected Palestinian militants in Sinai, security officials said. Earlier this week seven people were arrested in the area, three of them while carrying suicide belts and suspected of planning to attack Israeli tourists, the officials said. The arrests prompted police to search possible hideouts. One sweep led them on Friday to a warehouse near the Karm Salem border crossing where they found 34 sacks stuffed with one tonne of explosives, the security officials, who did not wish to be named, said. Egyptian police regularly seize explosives and ammunition in Sinai, sometimes hidden in tunnels near the border with the Palestinian territories. It is believed some of the equipment is smuggled to gunmen in Gaza. At least three Palestinian suspects in custody were members of the militant group Islamic Jihad, officials said. "They were planning to sneak into Israel through Sinai to carry out attacks, or hit tourists in Sinai in case they fail to reach Israel," one told Reuters. Bombers have attacked south Sinai resorts popular with Israeli tourists three times in the past 2-1/2 years. Egypt has blamed the attacks on a group of Islamists who are from the Sinai Bedouin community and sympathetic toward the Palestinians. Another Palestinian suspect was still on the run, officials said. About 60 Palestinian and Egyptians, including Sinai Bedouin, have also been detained for questioning. "Cars and trucks have been closely watched and guarded for fear they could be used in (suicide) operations inside Sinai," the security official said. On Wednesday, police found 240 old anti-tank mines and six artillery shells stashed in the mountains of central Sinai. A security source said police suspect the owners planned to empty the ordnance, left over from 20th century wars, and smuggle the explosive material to Palestinian groups. The Israeli government often complains about the smuggling of weapons, ammunition and explosives across the Egypt-Gaza border. Egypt says it does its best to stop it.
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