Egypt blocking Gaza tunnels after shootings

Egypt began work to seal off smuggling tunnels into the Gaza Strip on Tuesday, a security source said, two days after gunmen shot dead 16 Egyptian border guards in an attack blamed partly on Palestinian Islamist militants.

A Reuters reporter in the border town of Rafah said heavy equipment was brought to the area near the tunnels, which are used to smuggle people to and from Gaza but also food and fuel that are a lifeline for the territory's population.

"The campaign aims at closing all the openings between Egypt and the Gaza Strip that are used in smuggling operations," said the security source.

(Reuters)