Israeli Prime Minister, Ariel Sharon, visited the Israel-Egypt border, in the south, on Tuesday, and instructed the army to take “stringent measures” to ensure the border security and stop all sorts of smuggling.
Sharon conducted the tour following warning of attempts by resistance fighters to smuggle cells into Israel and the Gaza Strip via the Sinai Peninsula, Israeli online daily Ynetnews reported.
“We have to stop the infiltrations through the borders” Sharon stated, “We don’t want to reduce or hamper them; we want to stop them completely”.
Also, Sharon added that the Israeli security forces should foil the smuggling attempts carried out but fighters, and criminals, with the same measures and strictness.
“There is no difference between criminal and security infiltrations”, he added and vowed that Israel will find the “proper solutions”.
Israeli security officials claimed during a meeting with Sharon at the Cabinet meeting on Sunday, that several Palestinian resistance factions are attempting to carry infiltrations in order to conduct “large scale attacks”.
The officials informed Sharon on smuggling activities across the borders, which included smuggling of drugs, arms, tobacco and prostitutes.
Israeli Defense Minister, Shaul Mofaz, Justice Minister, Tzipi Livni, and Security Minister Gideon Ezra, in addition to the Israeli army Chief of Staff Dan Hallutz accompanied Sharon in his tour.
