Saturday, January 26, 2008

Much of southern Israel closed to civilian traffic, US and Israeli bases on high alert for Hamas incursions from Sinai

Most highways of the southern Negev - which adjoins the Egyptian Sinai frontier - were ordered shut to civilian traffic early Saturday, Jan. 26, until further notice. This is Israel’s most extensive terror alert ever, DEBKAfile’s military sources report. The big Israeli and American air and military bases in the region are on high terror alert and officers’ families are being removed to central Israel, following intelligence warnings that Hamas, Jihad Islami and al Qaeda are preparing to launch suicide operations across the porous Egyptian border from N. Sinai. So too are 221 and 222 and parts of Routes 40 and 12. Israeli units have been deployed to block off to terrorist access to the southern towns of Eilat, Mitzpeh Ramon, Kfar Yeruham, Beersheba, Arad and the villages and military installations located in the Negev and Aravah regions. Popular tourist nature reserves and beauty spots are closed.

The latest intelligence input speaks of an ingathering in Sinai of al Qaeda cells from Egypt and other parts of the Middle East. They are heading for the Egyptian-Israel frontier, which Egyptian border forces have abandoned to focus on the anarchy on the Gaza-Egyptian border Hamas generated by knocking down the border wall. One-third of Gaza’s 1.5 million Palestinian inhabitants has flooded into N. Sinai in a disorderly exodus.

DEBKAfile’s counter-terror sources disclose an ominous symptom: Al Qaeda has appointed an “emir” for the Gaza Strip, the customary military commander appointed when the jihadist group goes into operational mode.

No comments: