GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip — Egypt's tight closure on neighboring Gaza after a weekend attack by Islamic militants has sent Gaza prices for construction materials soaring and left hundreds of medical patients stranded, officials said Wednesday.
The attack that killed 16 Egyptian soldiers at a Sinai Peninsula border post near Gaza also strained relations between Egypt's new government and Gaza's Hamas rulers. Hamas and Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi come from the region-wide Muslim Brotherhood, but Sunday's attack, the worst ever by militants against Egyptian troops, drove a wedge between them.
In response to the attack, Egypt shut down the Rafah passenger crossing between Egypt and Gaza, as well as hundreds of smuggling tunnels under the border. Smuggling under the 15-kilometer (9-mile) border has circumvented official crossings and bypassed restrictions for many years.
Israel, which controls all other gates into Gaza, restricts the influx of goods into the territory, so Gazans smuggle in construction materials, cars and fuel. Israel charges that Hamas also receives weapons and cash through the illegal tunnels. Hamas officials are known to collect fees from tunnel operators.
Yasser Othman, the Egyptian ambassador to the West Bank-based Palestinian Authority, said Wednesday that the closure would remain in place until security is restored.
He rejected allegations by a senior Hamas official that the closure amounted to collective punishment, saying it was temporary and did not contradict pledges by the Morsi government to help Gaza in the long run. more
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