Israeli tanks briefly entered the Gaza Strip to secure a border crossing. Tanks rolled around the Palestinian Authority side of the Erez terminal Tuesday to demolish obstacles that could be used as cover for gunmen. Tank crews also provided water bottles to scores of Palestinians, mostly from the Fatah faction, who have taken refuge at Erez since Hamas seized control of Gaza last week. Among the refugees are several casualties from a terrorist shooting Monday who have not yet been evacuated to hospital in Israel because of security concerns. Those who used to coordinate the passage of people into Israel in advance, and do security checks on them, are not there anymore, Col. Nir Press, the Israeli officer in charge of Erez, told Israel Radio. This is how a terrorist was able to enter the crossing and open fire.
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