Smoke rises after Egyptian army demolished houses on the Egyptian side on border town of Rafah (10/29). With dynamite and bulldozers, Egypt's army demolished dozens of homes along its border with the Gaza Strip on Wednesday, after the military ordered residents out to make way for a planned buffer zone meant to stop militants and smugglers. AP/Eyad Baba
TEMPO.CO, Cairo - Egypt has begun demolishing homes along its border with the Gaza Strip to make way for a planned 500 meter buffer zone which will have water-filled trenches.
As reported by BBC on Thursday, October 30, 2014, residents living in the area have been given 48 hours to move. They also have been promised compensation.
This recent move by Egypt aims to tighten its border, especially against weapons smuggling to Sinai which is allegedly conducted by Hamas.
Last week, more than 30 Egyptian militants were killed in a militant bomb attack on a military post in Sinai.
Since then, Egyptian President Abdul Fatah al-Sisi passed a law authorizing the military to protect government facilities. However, this action is condemned by al-Sisi's opposition, who criticized the move of allowing the military to return to the streets and take arbitrary actions.
