Erez crossing closed under a week after restrictions eased in Gaza and W. Bank.
By JERUSALEM POST STAFFerez crossing barrier 88(photo credit: )
The Erez terminal crossing was shut down Friday morning due to terror alerts less than a week after Israeleased up restrictions on the Palestinian population in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, permitting thousands of Palestinian laborers from Gaza to enter Israel for work.
The army noted that humanitarian assistance and foreigners would still be allowed to enter and leave Gaza through the Erez crossing, but Palestinians were barred from using it.
According to security officials, the alert related to plans by a terror organization to launch an attack at the crossing in the coming days.
In the past five years, Gaza border crossings have suffered a number of terror attacks aimed at harming one of the only symbols of coexistence between Israel and the Palestinians.
In recent months, security measures at Erez have been improved, and Palestinians passing through the terminal have done so without any physical contact with IDF troops deployed at the site.
In June of this year, a female suicide bomber was caught by soldiers at the crossing. She wore explosives strapped to her pants, which were detected during the inspections. The new procedures implemented at the crossing meant that the soldiers were able to isolate her, thereby preventing potential harm to Palestinians and troops in the crossing.
