Military and strategic expert Major General Fayez Al-Duwairi said that Israel’s request from Egypt to place sensors along the Philadelphia axis with the Gaza Strip is aimed at cutting off communication between Gaza and the world.
Al-Duwairi explained – in his military analysis for Tel Aviv Tribune – that the Israeli request appears to be an excuse to prevent the Al-Qassam Brigades – the military wing of the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) – from digging deep tunnels into the Sinai Peninsula in order to smuggle food and weapons.
He added that Israel’s fundamental goal is represented by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s statements about the necessity of controlling the Philadelphia Axis (Salah al-Din Axis), which practically means cutting off communication between the Gaza Strip and the outside world.
The American Wall Street Journal quoted senior Egyptian officials as saying that Tel Aviv had asked Cairo to install sensors along the Philadelphia axis to alert Israel if Hamas tried to rebuild the tunnels.
The newspaper adds that Israel also wants to be allowed to send reconnaissance drones to the region to deal with the matter, revealing Egypt’s response that it will look into the matter, but approving the drones would be a violation of Egyptian sovereignty.
Late last year, Netanyahu said in a press conference, “The Philadelphia axis must be under our control. It must be closed. It is clear that any other arrangement will not guarantee the disarmament we seek.”
Netanyahu’s statements came to confirm what was reported in the Israeli media during the past weeks regarding the Israeli government’s intention to reoccupy the border strip between Gaza and Egypt and establish a buffer zone.
