Israeli authorities this week foiled an attempt to smuggle metal pipes and motors into the Gaza Strup, which could have been used for building rockets and tunnels, the Defence Ministry announced.
The Gaza-bound shipment came through Tarkumiya, a small village outside of Hebron in the West Bank. The trucks were headed to the Kerem Shalom crossing into Gaza.
Inspectors at the Tarkumiya crossing, along with the Shin Bet security service, intercepted the packages, which were believed to have been on their way to Hamas.
According to officials, the “large shipment” consisted of “hundreds of pipes with a diameter under four inches, with a special kind of screw that is used for the production of mortars and rockets”.
In addition to the weapons manufacturing material, the crossing authority employees also uncovered “dozens of electric motors that are used by terror groups for different build-up purposes, including the construction of underground networks”, referencing Hamas’s terror tunnels.
The materials were concealed among “textiles and jewellery” according to the authorities.
The practice of hiding illegal goods among approved products has become the go-to method for smugglers. Earlier this year, electrodes were discovered hidden in butter from a Ramallah factory. This month, Israel’s Tax Authority uncovered an attempt to sneak four tons of ammonium chloride into Gaza, concealed in table salt.
