'Israel' testing Egypt's 'weak hand' in war on Gaza: Reports
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According to a former US Ambassador to Qatar, Egypt has "nothing to offer" except maintaining the status quo.
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Egyptian army special forces soldiers deployed near the gate of the Egyptian side of the Rafah border crossing with the Gaza Strip in the east of North Sinai province on October 20, 2023 (AFP)
Israeli officials allege that they gained control of the Philadelphi corridor last month as part of an effort to cut off Hamas around eight months into the war on Gaza, alleging that the Palestinians utilized this passage to put up tunnels for funneling weapons.
According to Responsible Statecraft, the tunnels between Egypt and Gaza have also "given the Palestinians in the besieged enclave some a lifeline" in the strip, and now the siege will be much tighter, and Gaza's humanitarian crisis will only deteriorate.
Nabeel Khoury, former deputy chief of mission at the US embassy in Yemen told Responsible Statecraft that Israeli control over the corridor means "the complete encirclement of Gaza," which denies Palestinians "all hope of an Israel-free part of their borders."
Khoury also explained that the takeover would further hinder humanitarian aid efforts into the strip.
"Israel’s right-wing is getting its desired goal here: Full encirclement of Palestinians and denial of all means of livelihood — in other words, a step closer to driving out whoever is still alive once this war ends if it ever does," Khoury added.
President Abdel Fatah el-Sisi's government has been attempting to prevent an escalation of tensions with "Israel's" government while also containing increasing discontent among Egyptians who are fiercely pro-Palestinian.
By seizing control of the corridor, "Israel" is breaking the 1979 peace treaty with Egypt, something that may impact the future of Egyptian-Israeli relations since neither side wants to formally break ties, Patrick Theros, the former U.S. Ambassador to Qatar explained to RS.
"Cairo has shown it can suppress demonstrations effectively, but there has to be a point where Sisi must do something to placate public opinion. I don't know when, where, or what. But it must come."
The Israeli Channel 13 reported an extremely unusual incident between the Israeli occupation forces and the Egyptian Army on the border in the Rafah border crossing area, which led to the killing of 2 Egyptian soldiers.
Amid such pressure on Egypt, the el-Sisi government is "feeling humiliated with its vulnerabilities increasingly exposed." According to RS, reliant on the US for military assistance and unable to challenge the IOF, "there is not much Egypt can do to counter Tel Aviv."
According to Theros, Egypt can neither take in millions of Gazans and submit to Israeli demands nor can it threaten the occupation without directly threatening US partnership. "Other than maintaining the status quo, Egypt has nothing to offer. "
Even their connections with Hamas in Gaza are taken for granted by "Israel," Theros explains, adding that the Egyptian government wants an end to the war "as soon as possible to relieve the el-Sisi regime of these pressures."
Egypt clear in its refusal of Israeli presence at Rafah crossing: FM
Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry conveyed on Monday that the Hamas movement considers the Israeli proposal put forth by US President Joe Biden as "positive", adding that "we are now waiting for the Israeli response."
In late May, Biden unveiled a three-phase proposal that involves releasing Israeli captives held by the Palestinian Resistance in exchange for a ceasefire in Gaza. But Israeli occupation Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office stated on Saturday that any suggestion of "Israel" agreeing to a permanent ceasefire before "the destruction of Hamas' military and governing capabilities" was "a non-starter."
Hamas said it "views positively" the ceasefire proposal laid out by the US President and confirmed its readiness to "deal positively and in a constructive manner" with any proposal that is based on a permanent ceasefire and the full withdrawal of Israeli occupation forces from the Strip.
Biden mentioned that the proposal was sent to Hamas via Qatar for review. But Mousa Abu Marzouk, the head of Hamas' international relations office, confirmed to Al Mayadeen that the movement had not received any document regarding the proposal.
Abu Marzouk stated on Saturday that the US administration has yet to receive a positive response from the Israeli occupation regarding the proposal, "nonetheless they demand that we approve it."
He pointed out that what Biden announced are "principles that Hamas perceives as positive," but "we need to review them in full," underlining that the movement "will not accept any amendments to the old document concerning the ceasefire and the withdrawal from Gaza."
The Palestinian official explained to Al Mayadeen that if the proposal includes ending the war and withdrawing Israeli occupation forces from Gaza, then "the Resistance will stand by its people and accept the proposal."
