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Egypt turns back 3 000 Gazans
28/01/2008 19:17 - (SA)
Cairo - Egyptian authorities have turned back around 3 000 Palestinians trying to reach Cairo and other cities after crossing into Sinai from Gaza following a border breach, a security source said on Monday.
"The Palestinians were stopped and asked to turn back after travelling past El-Irish," 35 kilometres from the border town of Rafah, the furthest point they were allowed to reach to stock up on goods, the source told AFP.
Roadblocks have been set up across Sinai, particularly on the roads leading out of the peninsula and on to mainland Egypt, according to AFP correspondents.
Egyptian media reported on Monday that authorities had raided hotels and rented apartments in Cairo and other large cities in search of Palestinians who may have slipped past security.
One security source said a number of Palestinians had been arrested in Taba on the Israeli border and in southern Egypt.
Security forces have been given strict orders to prevent any Palestinians without passports or entry visas from staying in Sinai, the source said.
Several hundred thousand Palestinians have swarmed into Egypt since militants blew up the Rafah barricades on Tuesday night after a punishing Israeli lockdown of the Hamas-run territory cut vital fuel and aid supplies.
- AFP
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