Mossad: Weapons Smuggling from Sinai to Gaza Increasing

The Israel Security Agency warned that the scope of weapons smuggling to the Gaza Strip by terrorist organizations is expanding. This troubling information increases the fear of many in Israel that the current uprising  in thousands of Palestinians commemorating Yawm an-Nakbah are attempting to enter Israel from Lebanon, Syria and Gaza.

Translated into English Yawm an-Nakbah means "day of the catastrophe,"  an annual day of commemoration for the people who call themselves Palestinian of their failed attempt to prevent the creation of a Jewish homeland in 1948.

Due to the recent change in government, Egypt exerts little authority over the Sinai Peninsula, which allows smugglers to operate without almost any interference, the report states.

According to the ISA report, weapons smuggling to Gaza by the Hamas and Islamic Jihad terrorist organizations has increased since Operation Cast Lead more than two years ago, as those groups have sought "quality" weapons to improve their capabilities to strike the Israeli home front and fight against IDF troops in a future conflict.

The ISA report notes that Iran stands behind the armament effort as that country seeks to increase its influence amongst Palestinians and Palestinian terrorist groups.

The central smuggling route to Gaza is based on the transfer of weapons from Iran to Sudan, from where the weapons are moved into Egypt before being smuggled into Gaza. Because Egypt's government remains in a state of flux, weapons smugglers are finding it easier to move contraband from Egypt into the Palestinian territories.

According to the ISA, hundreds of rockets (mostly with ranges of 20-40 kilometers), about 1,000 mortar shells, dozens of individual anti-tank missiles and tons of explosives and explosives-making materials have been smuggled via this route since 2010.

In the Sinai Peninsula, a smuggling network exists that is comprised mainly of Bedouins whose main source of income is from smuggling, the report stated.

According to the ISA, smugglers in the Sinai Peninsula are operating with little interference since the change of government in Egypt

Jim Kouri, CPP, formerly Fifth Vice-President, is currently a Board Member of the National Association of Chiefs of Police, an editor for ConservativeBase.com, and he's a columnist for Examiner.com.  In addition, he's a blogger for the Cheyenne, Wyoming Fox News Radio affiliate KGAB (www.kgab.com). Kouri also serves as political advisor for Emmy and Golden Globe winning actor Michael Moriarty.He's former chief at a New York City housing project in Washington Heights nicknamed "Crack City" by reporters covering the drug war in the 1980s. In addition, he served as director of public safety at a New Jersey university and director of security for several major organizations.  He's also served on the National Drug Task Force and trained police and security officers throughout the country.   Kouri writes for many police and security magazines including Chief of Police, Police Times, The Narc Officer and others. He's a news writer and columnist for AmericanDaily.Com, MensNewsDaily.Com, MichNews.Com, and he's syndicated by AXcessNews.Com.   Kouri appears regularly as on-air commentator for over 100 TV and radio news and talk shows including Fox News Channel, Oprah, McLaughlin Report, CNN Headline News, MTV, etc.