Egyptian officials have confirmed that they have begun a new campaign to crack down on goods shipments into the Gaza Strip through underground tunnels, flooding several of the tunnels by pumping water into them.
Reporters saw one major tunnel, being used to ship cement into the tiny besieged enclave, flooded seemingly out of nowhere, forcing workers to scramble out leaving their goods behind. Israel has banned shipments of cement to the strip, claiming it could conceivably used to build bunkers.
Egypt’s Mubarak regime long cooperated with the Israeli blockade, but President Morsi had indicated an interest in opening the strip to more humanitarian aid. It does not appear that this will include cement, however.
The tunnels are estimated to prove some 30 percent of all of the goods available in the strip, with everything from construction material to clothes, toys and even cattle and vehicles find their way across the heavily guarded border by way of the tunnels.
The Mubarak regime regularly destroyed tunnels with the use of toxic gas, sometimes killing workers trapped inside. The moves were hugely unpopular domestically, and it remains to be seen if the Morsi government will be able to maintain a similar crackdown ahead of an election.
I suspect this is just corruption. Somebody did not get paid off, or demanded more. It is probably a mistake to attribute it to Morsi or national policy. Local authority manages the tunnels, and they profit from them just as Hamas does.
The more things change the more they stay the same. "Meet the New Boss same as the old Boss" – Wont get fooled again – The Who. One more reason the Tahrir Square youngsters are pissed off.
Nichols, you have it true and square. For the upper half of society in Egypt has always hoarder all the wealth, the 25% most wealth always hoards all the political and military power — and billionaire Morsi has no one fooled in Tahrir Square.
Danger of people over power
The danger of a good example are these tunnels, just like the Arab Spring a catalyst that could implode overnight and likewise bring down Egypt and all the other fake government in the Middle-East and North Africa..
Mark, this is big time, get your brains screwed on straight.
This Morsi is a disappointment. He who claims for the Syrians to get rid of Assad should pay attention to his own public.
So much for "Islamists" being on the side of the people.
Morsi is on is way out. He will now turn to the West for support in order to establish a dictatorship like that of Mubarak.It will not work however, and he had better plan an exit strategy.