Israel To Build Wall Around Gaza Strip, Limited Incursions into Khan Yunis

Israel plans to build a massive concrete wall along its border with the blockaded Gaza Strip with the stated aim of destroying cross-border tunnels dug by Gaza-based resistance groups, the Israeli press reported Wednesday, Anadolu Agency reported.

The planned barrier will complete Hamas-run coastal enclave’s isolation from rest of the world

According to daily Yedioth Ahronoth, the Israeli Defense Ministry recently accepted bids from 20 Israeli construction firms for the planned multi-layered wall, which will extend both above and below ground.

Construction is expected to begin in October with the participation of four Israeli companies, the paper reported.

The first phase of the wall will stretch 10 kilometers, which will be gradually extended to a total of 60 kilometers, entirely surrounding the coastal enclave, according to Yedioth Ahronoth.

The barrier aims to prevent tunnels originating from Gaza from entering Israeli territory, the newspaper added, “allowing the Israeli army to destroy them before they pose a threat”.
On the other hand, Israeli bulldozers escorted in a military convoy on Wednesday morning carried out limited incursions into Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip, locals said.

Local Palestinian sources said that four D9 Israeli military bulldozers were deployed from the gate of the Israeli Kissufim crossing into eastern Khan Yunis.

An Israeli army spokesperson said they were looking into reports.

Israel maintains a “security buffer zone” along Gaza’s land and sea border and frequently levels land inside and close to this zone.

Palestinians who work near the “buffer zone” between the besieged Palestinian enclave and Israel often come under fire from military forces, as the Israeli military has not made clear the precise area of the designated zone.

According to UN documentation, Israel has made at 43 military incursions into the blockaded Gaza Strip since the beginning of the year.

Since 2007, the Hamas-run Gaza Strip has groaned under a joint Israeli-Egyptian blockade that has deprived its almost two million inhabitants of basic commodities, including food, fuel, and medicine.

Despite the blockade’s devastating humanitarian impact, the international community — with a few notable exceptions, including Turkey — has quietly condoned the embargo.