In Gaza's smuggling tunnels, Egypt's interests trump Brotherhood ties

Abu Ayyad, an Egyptian who shares ownership of a tunnel with Gazan partners, says he used to charge $15 for transporting one ton of cement through his tunnel. After the military operation, he doubled his rate. He used to send goods underground, mostly food and building supplies like cement and steel, 24 hours a day, but now he opens the smuggling route only at night for fear of security forces. 

Daunting price spikes

While he is profiting from the new situation, those on the Gazan side are bearing the brunt of the price increases. “The prices of everything coming from Egypt have skyrocketed,” said Ahmed Ashour, a sound technician who works in Gaza City. “Two days ago, I went to buy a shirt for my little son and I was astonished when I was told it is worth 60 shekels [about $15], when I used to buy the same shirt for 40 shekels.”

Nearly two thirds of Gaza’s population is unemployed, and nearly 40 percent live below the poverty line, making price hikes especially debilitating. “Egypt is to blame for closing the tunnels, but our governments are also responsible for us and they should do everything possible to end our suffering,” says Mr. Ashour.

Mohamed al-Aila, a cement importer in Gaza, says cement prices have risen by 50 percent since the Egyptian army began targeting the tunnels. Building materials, like cement and steel, are some of the main goods imported through the tunnels. Israel generally prohibits such materials to be sent into Gaza through the Israeli-controlled crossings because it fears they could be used to create weapons or fortifications.

“It’s really difficult for me to bring more goods into Gaza, because most of the tunnels I used to use were destroyed,” says Ashour. He complains that he has to pay more to the tunnel owners who are working to transport the cement, and that the Egyptians who sell him the cement have also raised their prices, claiming it has become more difficult to smuggle goods into Sinai. “If things go on like this, I guess the already struggling economy of Gaza will collapse, and my business will be down,” he says.

A bold proposition

Tarek Lubbad, spokesman for the Hamas government’s economic ministry in Gaza says monthly imports of construction materials are down by 45 percent, while basic food imports are down by 31 percent since the tunnel closures.

To solve the issue of the tunnel trade, which poses a security risk to Egypt because of the weapons and militants who can pass beneath the border, Hamas has proposed closing the tunnels altogether and opening a free trade zone on the border to allow goods into Gaza legally.

Hamas officials say Khaled Meshaal, the group’s political leader, discussed the idea with Egyptian intelligence several weeks ago and were rejected, but Morsi’s spokesman dismissed the idea, saying it was never officially discussed. 

Even as he deals with a security problem in the Sinai, Morsi is “trying to reposition himself as a president for all Egyptians, not as a Brotherhood president,” says Anani. Granting Hamas's request would undermine that effort, says Anani, because his opponents will accuse him of appeasing Hamas at the expense of Egyptian interests.

Egyptian officials have long feared that opening trade with Gaza would allow Israel to close its border with Gaza and pass on the responsibility of meeting Gaza's humanitarian needs to Egypt.

In recent weeks, Hamas has called several protests against the tunnel closures, with leaders of the organization holding sit-ins in Rafah, near the tunnels.

“We have told Egypt that we can destroy the tunnels if they provide us with another alternative,” says Mr. Lubbad. “The tunnels are the only lifeline for us here and the closure of the tunnels means the death of Gaza. We appeal to the Egyptian leadership to reconsider its decision to destroy the tunnels that provide the besieged Palestinians with food and construction materials. I don't believe that the new leadership will help Israel tighten the siege on Gaza.”

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