Qassam rocket launchers in Gaza. Photo: Israel Defense Forces.

JNS.org – Israel will allow building materials for private projects into Gaza for the first time since 2007, when the Palestinian terror group Hamas seized control of the territory.

An Israeli defense official told Reuters that 350 trucks of cement, steel, and concrete would cross into Gaza. The official said that Israel’s decision came after a request by Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas.

Gaza has seen a shortage of building materials since Egyptian authorities closed the border after the ouster of Islamist President Mohamed Morsi in early July. Egypt’s new government has accused Hamas of aiding terror groups in the bordering Sinai Peninsula as well as supporting the Muslim Brotherhood. But Egyptian authorities this week have announced that they will be opening the Gaza border for a few hours a day.

In addition to the crackdown, Egypt has begun destroying the network of smuggling tunnels under the Gaza border that Hamas uses to import rockets, weapons, and other goods.