'Millions of lives to be sacrificed' to keep Sinai Egyptian land: PM

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
31 Oct 2023 16:03
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The Egyptian Prime Minister says attempts to harm Egypt throughout history have originated from Sinai.

The Egyptian national flag in front of an Egyptian soldier on guard in Cairo, Egypt, in 2019 (AFP)

Egyptian Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly declared on Tuesday that his country will not tolerate resolving regional issues at the expense of his country.

During a meeting with tribal leaders and dignitaries from Sinai at the headquarters of the 101st Battalion in el-Arish, Madbouly emphasized Egypt's readiness to "sacrifice millions of lives to maintain Sinai as an Egyptian territory."

He pointed out that "attempts to harm Egypt and threaten it throughout history have often originated from Sinai," making "Northern Sinai the dearest spot in Egypt to Egyptians' hearts."

Red line

A recent report by AP revealed that the Israeli Intelligence Ministry has drafted a plan detailing a wartime proposal for the forcible displacement of the 2.3 million Palestinians in the Gaza Strip into the Sinai peninsula.

The Israeli occupation Prime Minister downplayed the proposal of the mass displacement as being simply a hypothetical "concept paper", however, its concluding remarks eerily mirrored the brutal events of the 1948 Nakba. This proposal of systematic dispossession and displacement has put additional strain on the occupation's relations with Ramallah and Cairo.

“We are against transfer to any place, in any form, and we consider it a red line that we will not allow to be crossed,” Nabil Abu Rudeineh, a spokesperson for Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said commenting on the report.

Egyptian officials didn't comment on the report, however, earlier, President el-Sisi addressed this prospective issue, saying an the forced displacement of Palestinians from Gaza could threaten the 1979 "peace treaty".

El-Sisi confirmed in another statement that his country rejected “any attempt to liquidate the Palestinian issue by military means or through the forced displacement of Palestinians from their land, which would come at the expense of the countries of the region."

In this context, a report by the Financial Times revealed that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sought to convince European leaders to put pressure on Egypt to accept the Palestinians "Israel" forcibly displaces from Gaza, according to people briefed on the discussions.

The idea, which he put forward in meetings with European officials last week, was floated by countries including the Czech Republic and Austria in private discussions that led up to a summit of EU leaders on Thursday and Friday, those people told the Financial Times.

However, key European countries, notably France, Germany, and the UK, have dismissed the proposal as unrealistic, pointing to Egyptian officials’ consistent resistance to the said idea, even temporarily.