Israel declares Egypt border a closed military zone to combat UAV smuggling

Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz has ordered the army to declare the area adjacent to the Egyptian border a “closed military zone” due to weapons smuggling using unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs).

According to a statement from the Ministry of Defense, Katz discussed the alleged smuggling activities from Sinai into Israel via UAVs with officials from the army, police, and internal intelligence services.

Rules of engagement to be updated

Following the meeting, Katz stated, “I have instructed the army to convert the area adjacent to the Israel-Egypt border into a closed military zone and to update the rules of engagement accordingly to combat the UAV threat that endangers the country’s security.”

Katz added, “Weapons smuggling with UAVs is part of the war in Gaza and aims to arm our enemies. All possible measures must be taken to stop this.”

Two UAVs intercepted in recent days

The border between Israel and Egypt is approximately 200 kilometers long.

In a statement on Sunday, the Israeli army announced that it had detected and shot down a UAV carrying eight weapons that was “attempting to smuggle weapons into Israeli territory from the west.”

On Tuesday, a second smuggling attempt was thwarted with the interception of another UAV carrying 10 handguns, which was reported to have entered Israel from the “eastern border.” Jordan is located on Israel’s eastern border.

Minister Katz said, “Today, we are declaring war on those involved in smuggling. Anyone who violates the restricted zone will be targeted.”

Support for the decision from a far-right minister

Meanwhile, far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir congratulated Katz on the decision in a post on the social media platform X.

Ben-Gvir claimed that this step “acknowledges that the smuggling conducted in the region serves terrorist purposes.”