MOSCOW, September 30 (RIA Novosti) - Israeli government decided to construct a "smart" fence around the Gaza Strip in order to ensure the safety of the citizens of Israel, the local media reported Tuesday.
"Work has already begun in [Gaza Belt] communities," said an unnamed officer in the Southern Command, as quoted by Israel National news portal. "The goal is to become more alert to infiltrations as they happen on the ground, in face of threats from [nearby] Gaza - and there are many of them," the source added.
According to the Israeli media, the fence will be equipped with an alarm system to alert the regional authorities in case of infiltration attempts. There are similar fences in Israel's Judea and Samaria.
The decision to build a fence was made by the country's Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon following the latest escalation of Israeli-Palestinian conflict which began in June this year after Israel laid the blame for the death of three Israeli teenagers on Hamas, a radical Palestinian Islamic organization and the de facto authority in Gaza. In response, Israel launched its operation "Protective Edge."
On August 26, the Palestinian Authority and Israel with the mediation of the Egyptian government agreed to an open-ended truce. According to UN estimates, the conflict killed over 2,100 Palestinians and 71 Israelis. The next round of Israeli-Palestinian talks is set to take place at the end of October.
