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Photo: Niv Calderon
Guy Bechor
Photo: Niv Calderon

Let Egypt into Gaza

Egypt, rather than Israel, should become increasingly involved in Gaza Strip

Do not belittle this pivotal moment at the Erez crossing and do not misinterpret history, which is being rewritten these days. What will transpire this week will affect us for many years to come.

 

The Gaza Strip is tantamount to a large water container with two narrow openings on each end, with each opening being blocked by a finger as the water struggles to burst forth. On the one side Israel is blocking the opening, and on the other side – Egypt. This is a battle of attrition whose outcome will be historic. The water will burst forth and stay forever on the side that breaks and removes its finger for even a moment.

 

Neither Egypt nor Israel want the responsibility over Gaza, and therefore both are closing off their borders. The first to break will receive Gaza - as a gift.

 

In many senses we have returned to the era of the Begin-Sadat talks during the end of the 1970s – ie who does the Strip belong to? Truth is, it was easier then: Anwar Sadat wasn't interested in Gaza and Menachem Begin was, maintaining that it was part of the Land of Israel. Nowadays, no one wants responsibility for this strip of death, which is under the control of a band of robbers.

 

The same values that failed us over and over again - and which Egypt is free of - are working against us in this attritional struggle. Our merciful hearts. The one-sided "human rights organizations," the always-critical media and a short-term legal viewpoint – all are failing to ask a simple question: Egypt is after all an Arab country, the Palestinians' elder sister, which connects them to the Arab world historically. Egypt has good relations with Hamas and Islamic Jihad, and Egypt had control over Gaza until 40 years ago. In Gaza, Arabic is spoken with an Egyptian accent. Why then, after full Israeli disengagement, should the burden fall on the shoulders of Israel, the Palestinians' enemy, of all countries?

 

Time to fully disengage

Hamas' Gaza Strip now presents an opportunity to fix our failure to fully disengage from there. Israel is continuing to willingly supply water, gas, and fuel to the Strip and is even willing to resume the inflow of laborers from there. If there's disengagement let it be full. The Palestinians saw this as their victory anyway. So please, let them fend for themselves or with their great Arab sister Egypt. If we retake responsibility over this Palestinian area, which is controlled by global radicalism, the entire painful episode of disengagement would have been wasted.

 

Gaza presents a further opportunity vis-à-vis Egypt: As long as Fatah only partially ruled Gaza, the Egyptians consoled themselves or at least led us to believe - that it would be better if the Palestinians ruled Gaza and not them. Hence, they also took lightly the infiltration of arms into the Strip. They regarded themselves as mediators at the most, while mitigating their influence to a bare minimum.

 

This fabrication is no longer valid. Egypt should have no doubt that the terror regime in Gaza will impact the entire Sinai Peninsula, and ultimately Cairo as well. The Egyptians must understand that there are no more excuses and that now they are obliged to act: Prevent arms from flowing into Gaza, while entering the Strip and getting increasingly involved. This is not just for the benefit of Israel, and I don't expect them to do it for us. It is first and foremost for their benefit and their regime.

 

 


פרסום ראשון: 06.21.07, 13:57
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