The Egyptian government sympathizes, it says, with the people of Gaza, but is determined to keep those who wish to leave that war zone bottled up in the Strip. And Egypt has just been threatening to move more troops, weapons, and planes into the Sinai to ensure that the Gazans cannot cross into Egypt, a move which would violate the terms of the Camp David Accords. More on this threat from Cairo can be found here: “Egypt threatens to send troops, aircraft to Sinai Peninsula after Gazan displacement – report,” Jerusalem Post, September 20
Egypt is threatening military escalation in response to the mass displacement of Gazans, an Egyptian military official told Hezbollah-affiliated al-Akhbar in a Saturday report.
Potential Egyptian military actions would include doubling the number of Egyptian soldiers and transferring weapons and aircraft to the Sinai Peninsula, with the source adding that it hopes to act as a “deterrent to Tel Aviv.”
Israel is not pushing Gazans to enter Sinai, so there is no need for Egypt to “deter” the IDF from actions it has no intention of taking.
The military official told the source that “instructions for a plan to deal with any emergency include not shooting at any Palestinian approaching the border, and dealing with the matter exclusively according to humanitarian standards.”…
If the Egyptians will not be shooting at “any Palestinian approaching the border,” then for what do they need more troops and heavy weapons, including airplanes? Could it be that they are using the threat of a mass movement of Gazans into Egypt as an excuse to move those soldiers and weapons to he northern Sinai, on the border with Israel, in direct violation of the Camp David Accords? And those troops and weapons will now remain there, even if Israel protests.
Egypt’s Foreign Minister Badr Abdelbatty claims to want to “alleviate the burden and suffering of Palestinians” in Gaza. One easy way is just to let those Gazans who want to leave the Strip while fighting is going on to do so, instead of forcing them to remain in Gaza. Egypt need not take them in permanently, but only needs to let them into the Sinai, from where they could be sent to third countries. Why does the “international community” not speak out in favor of letting those Gazans who wish to leave the Strip to do so, in order to be taken in by those countries willing to have them, either temporarily or permanently? It is because the Gazans are being used as pawns by those who hate Israel, and want the Gazans to suffer without any hope of alleviation, including allowing those who wish to leave to do so via Egypt, for safety in other countries willing to take them in. And Egypt, sharing a border with Gaza, has just signaled its determination to keep them from entering Sinai through the border crossing at Rafah. It doesn’t want Gazans to exercise the right to move to countries willing to have them. Egypt’s supposed sympathy for the Gazans does not include helping them to move out of harm’s way.
One response to Egypt’s latest move might come from Washington. The Americans could threaten to cut off all aid to Egypt — now about $1.3 billion a year — unless Egypt agrees to allow Gazans who so desire to enter the Sinai, and from there to be sent to third countries willing to take them in.
Jeffrey r fixler says
If you recall Hugh, back in February, the Trump Administration did threaten Egypt ,as well as Jordan ,with an aide cutoff if they did not allow refugees to at least temporarily take refuge in the Sinai. This move was seconded by many in Congress. El Sissi , who was actually scheduled to visit Washington in February, canceled the trip and dug in his heels that Egypt was never going to “jeopardize their security” with such a move. Unfortunately, that seemed to be the end of the matter. Pity Trump and Rubio decided not to press the matter, and that seemed to be the end of it. Particularly galling given Egypt’s duplicity in help creating the crisis in the first place. All those weapons Hamas and Islamic Jihad have stockpiled were smuggled thru the Rafah border from the Sinai, and you know what, it was a guy named Mahmoud El Sissi who was a leading member of the “consortium” making many millions of dollars “supplying” smuggled weapons to Gaza. That’s right. The same Mahmoud El Sissi who just happens to be the son of the President of Egypt, and you can bet your bottom dollar that Papa El Sissi got his cut of the action for sure. Makes Hunter Biden and the Biden crime family look downright pedestrian. Needless to say, virtually no one talks about this , or points the finger at the President of Egypt for this obvious corruption. I guess corruption in Egypt and throughout the Arab world is to be expected , and there’s nothing to see here.
Jeffrey r fixler says
By the way, in continuation of my above comment, the Egyptians allowing smuggling of arms thru the border is a clear and obvious violation of the Camp David Peace Treaty, but I guess when there’s big money to be made, it would be too much to expect the El Sissi crime family to resist the temptation, and if they got away with that for over a decade, why wouldn’t they continue to violate their treaty with Israel by re-militarizing the Sinai?
gravenimage says
Yep…
James Lincoln says
Egypt is being pragmatic:
No country in their right mind would want to let in “Gazans”.
nicholas tesdorf says
Egypt is concerned about Gazans because it knows how dangerous and demented they are. They want them far away behind a big wall.
abu taleb says
I think muslims prefer to supporting the jihad than saving human lives because their evil Allah gives more reward for supporting jihad.
Islam never really teaches people to love lives, it teaches to glorify Islam by gaining wealth and power both for Islam and for themselves.
somehistory says
And if they allow the so-called palestinians to come to their country, then those muzzies will no longer be the weapons against Israel as much as they are now.
OLD GUY says
Islam is using the people of Gaza as a tool and could care less about them.
gravenimage says
Egypt Cares Very Much About Gazans, But Won’t Let Them In
…………………………………………….
We’ve seen this before…