JERUSALEM, Sept 16: Israel said on Friday it was considering creating a no man’s land to the north of the Gaza Strip to bolster security after its pullout in a move set only to further isolate the impoverished Palestinian territory.

The possibility was raised after thousands of people illegally streamed across Gaza’s border with Egypt since Israeli troops left the territory on Monday, exacerbating fears that militants could infiltrate the Jewish state.

“We want to build an electric fence or wall on Israeli territory, north of the Gaza Strip, to create a no man’s land prohibiting access to the Palestinians and alleviate the danger to Israeli towns in the sector from the chaos in Gaza,” said a spokeswoman from the defence ministry.

“We also want to ask the Palestinians to establish their own no man’s land of a few dozen metres, in consultation with Israel,” she added.

Palestinian planning minister Ghassan Khatib said the ‘unilateral’ decision was proof that Israel remained an occupation force regardless of its withdrawal of all troops from Gaza following 38 years of military rule.

“Israel is working on a unilateral basis. They didn’t ask us to do this. Israel is still an occupying force,” Mr Khatib charged.

The Palestinians insist that until Israel rescinds control of Gaza’s land borders, air space and territorial waters, there can be no end of occupation.

In the four days since Israeli troops rolled out of Gaza, the largely unstemmed flow of people in and out of Egypt has exacerbated Israeli fears that the porous border is becoming prey for weapons-smuggling militants.

In a sign of the new ease of foreign travel, leaders from Egypt’s banned but tolerated Muslim Brotherhood movement watched as hundreds of armed militants from Hamas paraded through the ruins of a former Jewish settlement.

Nizar Rayan, a Hamas leader, urged a huge crowd of supporters to welcome the Brotherhood visitors from Egypt, as more than a thousand Hamas militants marched, brandishing M-16s and rocket-propelled grenade launchers.

A masked Al Qassam leader threatened Israel with fresh attacks unless it withdrew from all occupied Palestinian territory, not just the Gaza Strip.

“We tell our criminal enemies: leave our land before our army comes to you,” he said.

In order to combat the border chaos, Defence Minister Shaul Mofaz has ordered tougher security controls at Erez and Karni, the defence ministry spokeswoman said of the two main crossing points between Gaza and Israel.

“That may cause difficulties for the Palestinians, but the priority is to ensure Israeli security,” said senior Defence ministry official Amos Gilad.

Troops have similarly been ordered to step up surveillance along Israel’s own border with Egypt, as soldiers arrested two unarmed Palestinians who crept into Israel from northern Gaza.—AFP