Haniyeh's bodyguard smuggles gold into Gaza

Egyptian security forces arrest local merchants who allegedly sold large amounts of gold to Muhammad Naim, who then transferred it to Strip through underground tunnel

Roee Nahmias |Published: 09.13.10 , 22:54

Egyptian sources said security forces detained 12 gold merchants in Cairo and other parts of the country on suspicions of helping the bodyguard of Hamas Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh smuggle large amounts of gold into Gaza.

According to Egyptian newspaper Al Masry Al Youm, the bodyguard, Muhammad Naim, was arrested in Cairo six months ago after it was proven he was the owner of an underground tunnel used to smuggle gold, currency and terror suspects into the Strip.

The report said security forces began following Naim after an Egyptian gold merchant informed authorities that he had "suspiciously" requested large amounts of gold from local traders.

Some of the gold merchants have been released over the past few weeks. Twelve remain in custody.

The Egyptian sources said the traders sold the gold to Naim despite knowing it was meant to be smuggled into Gaza.

According to them, Naim moved to Egypt to complete his political science studies. During his arrest in April, gold and large sums of money were found in his apartment.