Israel on Thursday declared a prohibited zone along its border with Egypt to halt large-scale weapons smuggling by drone.
Orders to open fire will be changed correspondingly, according to a statement from Defence Minister Israel Katz. The statement said that it had been agreed with the head of the Shin Bet domestic intelligence, David Zini, to define arms smuggling using drones as a terrorist threat.
“We declare war – anyone who enters the banned zone will be hit,” the statement from Katz said. The order to open fire would apply to both drone operators and smugglers, he said.
“Arms smuggling by means of drones is part of the Gaza War, aims at arming our enemies, and all measures must be taken to halt it,” Katz’s statement said.
Smugglers had to realize that the rules had changed and that they would pay a very high price if they did not cease their activities, Katz said.
Israeli media report large-scale smuggling of arms and drones along the border with Egypt. The Times of Israel has reported smugglers on the Israeli side approaching to between 1 and 5 kilometres from the border, before launching drones.
The drones then land between 1 and 3 kilometres from the border on the Egyptian side, before being loaded up with contraband and returning to the Israeli side, according to the reports.
According to the media reports, the arms are intended for criminal gangs in Israel but often end up in the Gaza Strip.
Egypt has in the past denied reports of arms smuggling along its border with Israel.