October 31, 2024 | Flash Brief
Israel Downs Second Drone Smuggling Weapons from Egypt
October 31, 2024 | Flash Brief
Israel Downs Second Drone Smuggling Weapons from Egypt
Latest Developments
The Israeli military announced that it intercepted and shot down a drone from Egypt attempting to smuggle four rifles and a handgun into Israel. The October 30 incident marks the second drone smuggling attempt thwarted this month, following a similar interception 11 days earlier.
Shortly after the Hamas assault in southern Israel on October 7, 2023, Israeli military intelligence observed that Hamas had been smuggling weapons and ammunition through tunnels under the Egypt-Gaza border in the run-up to the atrocities. The terrorists reportedly carried the materiel under the Philadelphi Corridor, the narrow land corridor now under Israeli control that separates Gaza from Egypt. Since Israel took over the strip of land, tunnel-based smuggling from Egypt into Gaza has been heavily disrupted.
In addition to facilitating terrorist activity, the tunnels between Egypt and Gaza have, for years, facilitated illicit commerce. Criminals leverage the subterranean route to transport a range of items into the Gaza Strip, from household goods to narcotics.
Expert Analysis
“Hamas’s recent attempt to smuggle weapons using drones reflects the longstanding importance of the Philadelphi Corridor tunnels in sustaining its armament efforts over the past 19 years. Israel’s control over this corridor has severely restricted Hamas’s rearmament avenues, pushing the group to adopt alternative, less effective methods to sustain its low-level insurgency within the Gaza Strip.” — Ahmad Sharawi, FDD Research Analyst
“Israel’s interception of two weapon-smuggling drones this month signals a potential shift in smuggling tactics. We know that Hamas’s tunnel routes have been largely disturbed since the IDF took control of the Philadelphi Corridor. It was only a matter of time before the terrorist organization and its sponsors found other ways to rearm. This is an opportunity for Cairo to demonstrate that it will not tolerate smuggling and assist Israel with intercepting these drones.” — Mariam Wahba, FDD Research Analyst
Related Analysis
“Hamas Tunnels to Egypt Played Key Role in Arming Hamas,” FDD Flash Brief
“Truck-Height Hamas Tunnel Discovered on Gaza-Egypt Border,” FDD Flash Brief
“Israel Points to Hamas’s Hoarding of Gaza Fuel,” FDD Flash Brief