<P> Between December 2000 and June 2001, the barrier between Gaza and Israel was reconstructed . A barrier on the Gaza Strip - Egypt border was constructed starting in 2004 . The main crossing points are the northern Erez Crossing into Israel and the southern Rafah Crossing into Egypt . The eastern Karni Crossing used for cargo, closed down in 2011 . Israel controls the Gaza Strip's northern borders, as well as its territorial waters and airspace . Egypt controls Gaza Strip's southern border, under an agreement between it and Israel . Neither Israel or Egypt permits free travel from Gaza as both borders are heavily militarily fortified . "Egypt maintains a strict blockade on Gaza in order to isolate Hamas from Islamist insurgents in the Sinai ." </P> <P> In February 2005, the Knesset approved a unilateral disengagement plan and began removing Israeli settlers from the Gaza Strip in 2005 . All Israeli settlements in the Gaza Strip and the joint Israeli - Palestinian Erez Industrial Zone were dismantled, and 9,000 Israelis, most living in Gush Katif, were forcibly evicted . </P> <P> On 12 September 2005, the Israeli cabinet formally declared an end to Israeli military occupation of the Gaza Strip . </P> <P> "The Oslo Agreements gave Israel full control over Gaza's airspace, but established that the Palestinians could build an airport in the area ..." and the disengagement plan states that: "Israel will hold sole control of Gaza airspace and will continue to carry out military activity in the waters of the Gaza Strip ." "Therefore, Israel continues to maintain exclusive control of Gaza's airspace and the territorial waters, just as it has since it occupied the Gaza Strip in 1967 ." Human Rights Watch has advised the UN Human Rights Council that it (and others) consider Israel to be the occupying power of the Gaza Strip because Israel controls Gaza Strip's airspace, territorial waters and controls the movement of people or goods in or out of Gaza by air or sea . The EU considers Gaza to be occupied . Israel also withdrew from the Philadelphi Route, a narrow strip of land adjacent to the border with Egypt, after Egypt agreed to secure its side of the border . Under the Oslo Accords, the Philadelphi Route was to remain under Israeli control to prevent the smuggling of weapons and people across the Egyptian border, but Egypt (under EU supervision) committed itself to patrolling the area and preventing such incidents . With the Agreement on Movement and Access, known as the Rafah Agreement in the same year Israel ended its presence in the Philadelphi Route and transferred responsibility for security arrangements to Egypt and the PA under the supervision of the EU . The Egyptian army has since destroyed some Gaza Strip smuggling tunnels "in order to fight any element of terrorism", according to an Egyptian security official . The Gaza border crossing into Egypt remains under the full control of Egypt . Egypt has alternately restricted or allowed goods and people to cross that terrestrial border . Israel maintained control over the crossings in and out of Gaza, and the Rafah crossing between Egypt and Gaza was monitored by special surveillance cameras . </P>

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