In just six days since Israeli forces retreated from Gaza, it is estimated that hundreds of rifles have been brought through the border, as well as bullets and rockets of all types: anti-tank, anti-aircraft, and Katyushas. The weapons increase the danger facing southern Israeli cities from terrorist intentions.

Terrorists of Hamas and Islamic Jihad have also made their way across the border in recent days. IDF Southern Command sources fear that over the coming weeks, increasing numbers of terrorists will try to cross the Gaza border into mainland Israel and carry out terror attacks. Three Arabs who crossed the northern Gaza border were arrested by Israeli forces over the weekend, and shots were fired at an IDF jeep from northern Gaza today.

Meir Indor, of the Almagor Terror Victims Assocation, sent a telegram to Prime Minister Sharon in New York, saying, "Years of security work in preventing arms-smuggling to southern Gaza have gone down the drain. Hundreds of soldiers, including some who gave their lives, worked to prevent arms-smuggling, and this was all erased by the irresponsible order to retreat from the Philadelphi Route, relying on a quickly-collapsed agreement with an enemy - as we warned would occur."

Despite promises by PA chief Mahmoud Abbas (Abu Mazen) to stabilize the border situation, the PA has made little efforts to do so, until today. Free passage for Arabs between Gaza and Egypt has been the rule since last Monday, and thousands of Arabs have traversed the border in both directions. PA police officers fired into the air yesterday in a half-hearted attempt to control the area.

This morning, the PA announced that it had stationed 2,000 policemen along the route, and that it had stopped up the breaks in the wall across the border. PA sources have admitted that many weapons were smuggled across the border over the past few days.