By NNN-KUNA,
Gaza : Israel has informed Hamas it will fire warning shots at Palestinians who enter an area west of the Gaza Strip border fence, extending for several hundred metres, the Israeli daily Haartez reported.
Egyptian officials told Hamas of the new procedure, which is expected to raise tensions between the two sides, said the paper Tuesday.
Israel’s representative in the truce talks, Amos Gilad, told Egyptian mediators of the decision to declare the area west of the border a “special security zone” and to prevent Palestinians from entering it. The Egyptians informed Hamas, which “strongly” objected to the plan, the newspaper said.
Several incidents have occurred near the fence since a ceasefire came into effect on June 19.
Israel was interested in maintaining the security zone for fear that Palestinian groups would use the truce to plant explosives on the Palestinian side of the fence. This would prepare them should fighting resumes.
Israel also fears that Hamas might build a line of fortifications along the fence as a basis for further attacks.