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Rescue workers retrieve 2 bodies from Gaza tunnel cave-in

27 October 2012 23:12 (UTC +04:00)

Baku-APA. Palestinian rescue workers pulled the bodies of two smugglers who were killed when a tunnel beneath Gaza ’s borders with Egypt caved in three days ago, APA reports quoting Xinhua.

A third colleague in the group was evacuated dead Thursday evening, medical sources said.

The rescuers have been digging for the missing workers for three days with excavators.

Hundreds of tunnels are existed beneath Gaza’s southern border with the Sinai Peninsula. They have served as Gaza’s main lifeline after Israel imposed a ground blockade on the territory following Hamas’ violent takeover of the enclave.

Local rights group said more than 200 people were killed while working in the tunnels, most of them owing to cave-ins and some as a result of Israeli airstrikes.

Egyptian security forces have acted tough on the tunnels following the deadly attack in August which killed 16 Egyptian soldiers in Sinai.