ISRAEL- HAMAS WAR UNDERSCORES EGYPT´S INDECISIVENESS / GEOPOLITICAL FUTURES

Israel-Hamas War Underscores Egypt’s Indecisiveness

Cairo is walking a tightrope, unwilling to either categorically condemn or support Hamas’ attack.

By: Hilal Khashan

Like many other states, Egypt was caught off guard by the Israel-Hamas war. 

The magnitude of Hamas’ attack on Oct. 7 left Egypt little room to mediate a cease-fire between Israel and the militant group, as it had done many times in the past. 

Cairo’s response underscores its pattern of indecisive decision-making. 

Rather than demand that the fighting stop, Egyptian officials merely urged against the expansion of the war into other parts of the Middle East. 

Egypt was essentially walking a tightrope, unwilling to either categorically condemn or support Hamas’ attack. 

President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi isn’t concerned about the fate of Hamas, which is a close ally of his arch enemy, the Muslim Brotherhood. 

Rather, he’s worried about the far-reaching implications of creating a new regional reality – especially at a time when the Israel-Palestine conflict appeared to be easing and when more Arab countries, including Saudi Arabia, appeared to be accelerating peace talks with Israel.

Attitudes Toward Gazans

Egyptians have developed a perception of Palestinians as troublemakers who require continuous scrutiny by the country’s intelligence services. 

This attitude is the result of a number of high-profile incidents involving Palestinian groups. 

In 1978, members of the ultraradical Palestinian Abu Nidal Organization assassinated Egypt’s minister of culture. 

In 1985, members of the same organization hijacked an Egyptian airliner on its way to Malta. 

In an effort to rescue the passengers, an Egyptian commando force launched an operation that killed 56 hostages in the crossfire. 

In 2012, unknown attackers killed 16 Egyptian soldiers near the Kerem Shalom crossing in North Sinai Governorate. 

Many Egyptians accused Hamas of perpetrating the attack, which it vehemently denied.

Palestinians attempting to flee Gaza into Egypt have also faced discrimination and mistreatment. 

Palestinian travelers trying to enter Egypt through the Rafah crossing have long endured harsh humanitarian conditions, including shortages of drinking water and food, not to mention astronomical prices for basic necessities and a lack of public bathrooms. 

Those stranded at the border, including children, older people and those seeking medical treatment, must wait days to cross. 

Travelers have described their journeys as agonizing and humiliating.

When the crossing is open, Egyptian immigration officers approve just a small number of applications to leave Gaza. 

To have their applications accepted, travelers must pay $3,000 to agencies that work with a mafia of Egyptian officers and intelligence personnel. 

In times of crisis, bribes of up to $10,000 per person – more than 90 percent of which goes to Egyptians – are commonplace. 

Many people have fallen victim to scams that promise them passage if they pay bribes, only to find that their names have been left off the lists of approved applications.

These mafias have no mercy for the injured seeking treatment outside Gaza, as even they must pay $5,000 to enter Egypt. 

One Palestinian woman who accompanied her injured relative to a hospital in Cairo said hospital personnel prohibited wounded Palestinians from buying SIM cards or accessing the internet. 

They and their accompanying relatives also could not enter the cafeteria in the hospital and had to buy food from security personnel, who charged them exorbitant prices. 

After being attacked by el-Sissi’s supporters, she deleted her tweet and explained that she did not deny that Egypt was helping Palestinians.

Egyptian border guards charge Hamas $5,000 for each truck entering Gaza. 

Hamas covers the cost of food coming from Egypt, most of which is expired or nearly expired. 

Many Gazans report that they must pay Hamas for the food it provides them, whether donated by other countries or purchased from Egypt. 

Prices for all food products have skyrocketed. 

The price of salt, for example, soared from 10 cents per pound to $5.

Jordan’s King Abdullah has urged el-Sissi to open the Rafah crossing to bring in humanitarian aid. 

El-Sissi does not seem to want to antagonize the Biden administration, though Abdullah believes Washington would give the green light for the move, especially after the International Court of Justice ordered Israel to take steps to ensure the provision of humanitarian aid to Gazans.

Reluctance to Help

Egypt’s reluctance to open the border is part of its pattern of unassertive actions. 

After withdrawing from the Gaza Strip in 2005, Israel signed a deal with Egypt that would govern management of the Philadelphi Corridor, a narrow buffer zone along the Gaza-Egyptian border. 

Under the agreement, Israel handed over responsibility for border control on Gaza’s side of the corridor to the Palestinian Authority. 

The security situation in Gaza changed when Hamas expelled the Palestine Liberation Organization from the strip, and Israel and Egypt imposed a crippling blockade. 

Due to the movement of large numbers of Gazans to north Sinai in search of food and basic supplies, Egypt took control of the Palestinian side of the corridor. 

The last thing Egypt wanted was a heavily armed extremist group with close ties to the Muslim Brotherhood on its doorstep. 

Cairo even sent troops to the United States for training on locating and destroying tunnels used for smuggling weapons and other goods to Gaza. 

After President Hosni Mubarak was ousted in 2011, Egypt eased its restrictions. 

But following the 2013 coup against President Mohamed Morsi, Cairo again imposed severe restrictions on the movement of Gaza residents to Sinai. 

Egyptian workers bulldozed homes on the Egyptian side of Rafah City to create a buffer zone with Gaza. 

They also flooded the tunnels through which consumer items, weapons and militants were smuggled.

Israeli leaders now say they want to reimpose control over the corridor, angering Egypt, which argues that their bilateral agreement requires parties to obtain permission from the other party before carrying out any military action. 

Egypt also says Israel’s seizure of the Philadelphi Corridor would constitute a threat to its sovereignty and violate the 1978 Camp David Accords. 

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu downplayed the deterioration of relations with Egypt, stressing the depth of ties with el-Sissi and hinting that the leaks about his dissatisfaction with Israeli behavior are only for local consumption.

Indeed, Egypt cooperated with Israel in all of its previous wars against Hamas. 

For example, during the 2014 war in Gaza, several Israeli observers expressed astonishment at Egypt’s subtle approval of the conflict, which lasted 51 days. 

At the time, a political commentator for Israel’s Channel 13 broadcaster went so far as to say that anyone who would hear el-Sissi’s position would believe that he is a member of a Zionist movement and suggested that his stance stemmed from Hamas' being a branch of the Muslim Brotherhood.

Egyptian officials say Israel’s attempt to control the Philadelphi Corridor will jeopardize bilateral relations, while the Israelis believe their close ties, fostered over decades since Egyptian President Anwar Sadat’s visit to Jerusalem in 1977, will survive the temporary occupation of the corridor. 

The most Egypt can do if Israel takes control of the corridor is freeze bilateral security coordination without severing diplomatic relations. 

Since the significant Israeli operations north of Gaza Sector and the city of Khan Younis are nearing an end, the Israeli military will soon turn to Rafah. 

Given that more than half the population of Gaza has taken refuge near the Egyptian border, an Israeli assault on the third and final part of the strip will force Palestinians into northern Sinai.

Lack of Interest

Egyptian attitudes toward Palestinians aren’t unique in the Arab world. 

Arabs often accuse the Palestinians of selling their land to the Jews and fighting among themselves while asking Arab countries for help. 

They frequently tell the Palestinians to try to solve their problems on their own before asking for assistance. 

Arab leaders and citizens, especially in Egypt, say they have given generously to the Palestinians and sacrificed thousands of their youth for the Palestinian cause. 

To rationalize their own failure to confront Israel, they blame the Palestinians, describing them as ungrateful traitors. 

They view the presence of Palestinians in any country as a bad omen for its people. Egyptians have detached themselves from the question of Palestine, viewing it as a matter for the Palestinian people to resolve. 

They argue that Egypt, caught in a maze of poverty, must focus on its economic development and extricate itself from foreign issues.