Cairo [Egypt], February 17: There are currently many theories about Egypt's intentions when building this wall, including the purpose of supporting the Palestinian people.
The New York Times reported that Egypt is building a wall near the Gaza Strip , but the government declined to say what the project would be used for.
Images of a large portion of land being bulldozed and a wall being built between the buffer zone between Egypt and Rafah City were captured by satellites from Maxar Technologies.
According to image analysis by The New York Times and CNN, construction began in early February. This analysis coincides with information provided to The New York Times by a contractor who said the project had begun. February 5, with the goal of building a 5 m high wall, enclosing a 5 km 2 area of land
The source added that this work was carried out on orders from the Egyptian army. However, it is still unclear when the project will be completed, as well as what the purpose of construction is.
The New York Times commented that it is possible that the wall is used to help Palestinians cross the border. However, if this scenario is true, this would be a significant change for the Egyptian government, which previously refused to accept Palestinian refugees.
An Egyptian government spokesman did not provide details about the construction, instead referring to previous government statements, which emphasized border reinforcement.
Egyptian security officials on June 16 also told CNN that the country's border security has been enhanced as a precaution against an expected Israeli attack in Rafah, home to about 1.4 million people. Palestine is looking for shelter.
Speculation about the wall spread after four anonymous sources told Reuters that Egypt was setting up an area on the border to accommodate Palestinians in the event of an Israeli attack on Rafah. Sources note that this is a backup step for this country.
Egypt has repeatedly sounded the alarm about the possibility that Israel's devastating attack in Gaza could cause Palestinians to be displaced to the Sinai Peninsula, something Cairo "absolutely cannot accept".
Previously, Israel said it would launch an attack to destroy Hamas's "last bastion" in Rafah, where more than 1 million Palestinians are taking refuge after the devastating attack in Gaza. Israel said its military was drawing up plans to evacuate civilians from Rafah to other areas of the Gaza Strip.
However, United Nations aid chief Martin Griffiths said on February 15 that it was "an illusion" to think that people in Gaza could evacuate to safety. He also warned about the possibility of Palestinians flooding into Egypt if Israel conducts a military operation in Rafah.
Source: Thanh Nien Newspaper
