Traditionally, when Israel launches a protracted military operation against the Gaza Strip, Egyptian officials have worked behind the scenes to negotiate ceasefires as quickly as possible, but have avoiding making any public comments critical of Israel’s war. Since the revolution, things have changed.
With the advent of elections in Egypt, popular outrage at Israeli offensives is now a political issue as well. While getting back to a tense ceasefire of some sort seems to be job one, Egypt’s leadership is struggling to balance their interests in improving their relationship with Gaza with keeping the Israeli treaty intact.
So far this has meant far more public criticism of Israeli aggression, and the recalling of the Egyptian ambassador, while pushing for UN Security Council and Arab League action to help stop the fighting.
Egyptian Prime Minister Hisham Kandil is also taking the unheard of step of planning a Friday visit to the Gaza Strip itself, planning to meet with Hamas officials at the same time as Israel is trying to assassinate them. Israel’s military refused to comment on the visit, but it will presumably inconvenience the war at least for a little while.
Egypt is even courting the US on trying to stop the fighting, though this seems to have fallen on deaf ears, as the US responded by saying that Hamas was 100% to blame for the war and if Egypt wanted it to stop they should convince Hamas to stop retaliating when their leaders get assassinated.
The Arab nation should step back and see itself embarrassingly as a victim of western 'divide and conquer' tactics, particularly since the end of WWI. The Sykes-Picot act sealed the fate of present day Arab nations by creating artifical borders and perputating tribal dis-unity thus weakening any chance of these same Arabs acquiring pre-Ottoman independence.
By the way, where are the cowardly and feckless Saudis in support of their brethern Palestinians ? Oh I know! They are cowering behind their corrupt American protectors who ensured there would be no Arab Spring in Riyad. All due to the black stuff under the sand.
There is no doubt what little was there that america was always against Arab nations as a whole using them for the sake of the zionist now her ass is out of the middle east for good.and no say
Israel will seal the Gaza – Egypt border with ground forces, which will remain for years. Thus Israel will have complete control over access to Gaza, just as it does over access to the west bank.
Egypt and Turkey (our NATO ally) should militarily intervene on behalf of the besieged Gazans.
Egypt's torn my ass! Nothing has changed in Egypt. Ask the Palestinians in Gaza, they'll tell you.