Egypt building new Gaza wall

RAFAH, Egypt – Egypt is building a 13-foot-high concrete and rock wall interspersed with watchtowers along its narrow boundary with the Gaza Strip to prevent Hamas militants from breaching the border, an official said Thursday.

The wall, set back nearly 35 feet from an existing metal barrier, has guard towers every 100 yards. With it, Egypt hopes to prevent any future breaches like one in January when Palestinians broke through to escape an Israeli blockade, a security official said on condition of anonymity.

On Jan. 23, Hamas broke through the metal wall to let hundreds of thousands of Palestinians escape the blockaded Gaza.

After 12 days, Egypt sealed its borders and strongly warned against any attempts to forcibly open the seven-mile-long border again.