Israel has completed the main segment of a razor-wire fence along its border with Egypt. The five-metre high fence, bolstered by military surveillance equipment, is touted by Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu as proof of his commitment to Israel’s security as he campaigns for a national election on January 22. Israel says the barrier has been built to deter illegal migrants and Islamist fighters hiding out in Egypt’s lawless Sinai region. The final 14km section will be completed within the next three months, leaving the fence stretching from Israel’s Red Sea port of Eilat to the Gaza Strip on the Mediterranean. In the desert beyond, hardline Islamist groups have expanded in a security vacuum caused by the overthrow of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak in 2011, with efforts to re-impose central authority proving slow. Gunmen killed at least 16 Egyptian border guards in Sinai last August, hijacking an armoured vehicle which they smashed across the frontier before they were killed by Israeli forces. With security and illegal immigration a target of his campaign, Netanyahu travelled by military helicopter to the southern frontier for a ceremony on Wednesday marking the completion of the 230km section of fence. Netanyahu’s government has accelerated its construction, deported some migrants and imposed legal penalties on Israelis who hire them without work permits. Thirty-six migrants crossed illegally into Israel last month and were arrested, compared with 2,153 who entered a year ago, Netanyahu’s office said in a statement.
