BICOM

Israel’s Defence Ministry has announced it intercepted a “large shipment” of equipment to construct rockets and tunnels, heading for the Gaza Strip.

It said yesterday that Inspectors and Shin Bet security agency officers intercepted the shipment at the Tarkumiya crossing, near Hebron in the West Bank. The shipment was destined for the Kerem Shalom crossing between Israel and the Gaza Strip. Camouflaged among textiles and jewellery, they discovered large quantities of illicit materials routinely used in the manufacture of rockets and the construction of tunnels.

According to a Defence Ministry statement, the shipment included “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, Israeli authorities found “dozens of electric motors that are used by terror groups for different build-up purposes, including the construction of underground networks”.

The statement read: “The shipment has been confiscated and an investigation has been opened to locate those involved in the smuggling.”

Israel places restrictions on some goods entering the Gaza Strip to prevent Hamas from importing materials used for armaments and military infrastructure. Israeli authorities have intercepted prohibited goods on numerous occasions since Operation Protective Edge in 2014. Hamas is thought to be rearming, replenishing its arsenal of rockets, while it openly admits to rebuilding the complex network of tunnels designed to attack Israel.

Earlier this month, the Israel Tax Authority announced that the Shin Bet had intercepted an especially large quantity of salt at the Nitzana Crossing into the Gaza Strip. Inside the salt, officials found four tons of ammonium chloride in bags, which is typically used in large quantities to propel rockets. The incident came just days after Israel’s Defence Ministry announced it plans to re-open the Erez border crossing to increase the flow of goods into the Gaza Strip.