The Egyptian Authorities stated the installation of fortified iron, bulletproof, watchtowers on its border with the Gaza Strip. The watchtowers will be installed along the 13.5 kilometer border stretch with Gaza.
Egyptian sources stated that the new towers would replace the old wooden towers.
The decision was made after an Egyptian soldier was killed while standing inside a wooden watchtower that was only 7 meters high.
A total of 23 towers were designed and are ready for installation; 13 – 16 towers will be installed along the border with Gaza starting from international border marker #1 near the coast until border marker #7 near the Kerem Shalom (Karem Abu Salem), 4.5 kilometers south of the Rafah Border Terminal.
Egyptian sources stated that the security forces will be using rubber-coated bullets to fire at protesters near the border in an attempt to limit the number of casualties and the extent of injuries.
The sources added that a new plan to prevent smuggling will be implemented this year; the plan includes installing barbed-wires to seal the border of the Egyptian Rafah city, and to install an electronic gate that could detect weapons or metal. The gate would be placed in Bab Sidon area, on the outskirts of Rafah.
The barbed-wires would be installed this year starting from the Rafah coast area until the electronic gate, while border guards would also be deployed in the area to prevent any type of smuggling and to prevent vehicles from entering the area.
