Egyptian border guards on Monday discovered and destroyed the openings of 19 recently-built smuggling tunnels on the Egyptian side of the border with the Gaza Strip in Rafah city, Egyptian security sources said.
The sources told Ma'an that one of the biggest tunnels ended inside a house about 1,700 meters from the border.
One smuggler was arrested inside one tunnel during the operation, which ended with the demolition of all the tunnels.
Separately, border guard police seized about 60,000 pills of tramadol painkillers in Rafah as well as three vehicles loaded with cannabis and smuggled cigarettes.
The operation comes as Egyptian authorities prepare to demolish all homes with a 1,000 meter radius from the border, potentially displacing thousands of local residents.
The Egyptian government, which has actively destroyed smuggling tunnels underneath the border and directly targeted Hamas since a military coup in summer 2013, has promised to uproot as it can to ensure the creation of a buffer zone on its side.
The border area used to host hundreds of tunnels which Gazans used to import goods to get around the seven-year-old Israeli siege of the territory.
The sources told Ma'an that one of the biggest tunnels ended inside a house about 1,700 meters from the border.
One smuggler was arrested inside one tunnel during the operation, which ended with the demolition of all the tunnels.
Separately, border guard police seized about 60,000 pills of tramadol painkillers in Rafah as well as three vehicles loaded with cannabis and smuggled cigarettes.
The operation comes as Egyptian authorities prepare to demolish all homes with a 1,000 meter radius from the border, potentially displacing thousands of local residents.
The Egyptian government, which has actively destroyed smuggling tunnels underneath the border and directly targeted Hamas since a military coup in summer 2013, has promised to uproot as it can to ensure the creation of a buffer zone on its side.
The border area used to host hundreds of tunnels which Gazans used to import goods to get around the seven-year-old Israeli siege of the territory.
