Media reports claim that the Egyptian army has deployed tanks, personnel carriers and bulldozers to the east of Salah al-Din Gate in Sinai amid speculation that the move is to demolish dozens of houses along the border with the Gaza Strip. Witnesses on both sides of the border said that the deployment has created a state of panic among local residents.
Activist Khalil Musa from Sinai said that the people in the area are concerned that their houses will be demolished as part of Egypt’s plans for a “buffer zone” along the border. He said that the army will be operating in a “densely populated” area, with many houses just 50 metres from the border fence. He warned that Egypt’s military intelligence agency is determined to destroy the region and displace its residents up to one kilometre deep into Egyptian territory.
The army has intensified its bombing of tunnels and razing houses and farmers’ fields over the past three weeks.