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Common Enemy is Solidifying Security Relations and Trust
As Egyptian troops were launching a harsh crackdown on Islamist groups
in the northern Sinai Peninsula, Israeli officials were silent publicly
but more than satisfied privately. Both Bedouin residents in Sinai and
Egyptian officials said the crackdown was the harshest in recent years,
with tanks and troops backed by Apache helicopters striking at gunmen
along Egypt’s border with the Gaza Strip.
Egypt closed the Rafah border crossing on Saturday effectively trapping
1.7 million Palestinians inside Gaza. The only other exit from the
enclave is the Erez border crossing that connects with Israel, which is
used primarily by Palestinians who need urgent medical treatment in the
Jewish state.
Egyptian officials said that at least nine gunmen and two soldiers were
killed in Saturday’s attacks and that the assault on jihadist groups
will continue. The crackdown began after former President Mohamed Morsi
of the Muslim Brotherhood was deposed on July 3, and the Egyptian army
re-took control of the country. The government operation against
terrorists has been stepped up in the past few days.
“The Egyptians seem to be doing what they think is necessary to rein in
terrorist and jihadists of all sorts in Sinai,” a senior Israeli
official told The Media Line on condition of anonymity. “Enforcing law
and order in Sinai has been a long time coming. Egyptian stability and
security is good for Israel but they’re not doing this for us. This is a
purely Egyptian interest.”
According to Israeli army figures, more than 300 attacks were launched
against Egyptian troops in Sinai over the past few weeks. Last month, 25
Egyptian policemen were shot to death execution-style in the Sinai,
prompting widespread anger in Cairo.
Israeli military sources say there are hundreds of terrorists in Sinai,
most of whom belong to two major jihadist groups who are supported by
local Bedouin tribes. Some of the gunmen come from Iraq and Yemen and
are tied to global jihad and Al-Qa’ida. While their primary target is
the Egyptian military, they are also interested in carrying out attacks
against Israel.
Over the past two months, Egyptian soldiers have sealed about 80
percent of the hundreds of tunnels that have been dug between Egypt and
Gaza, having been used to smuggle weapons and drugs, as well as consumer
goods, between the two sides.
Sealing the tunnels has put the squeeze on Gazans, who, for instance,
now have to pay much more for gasoline imported from Israel instead of
having access to Egyptian-subsidized gas. For the jihadists in Sinai,
closing the tunnels means shutting-off an important avenue of escape in
the event of an attack by the Egyptian army.
"I believe there will be more Takfiri (one of the jihadist groups)
attacks in the coming days because the Egyptian troops are attacking
indiscriminately, and they kill civilians as well,” Gomaa Sawarka a
Bedouin resident a leading figure of the Sawarka tribe in Sinai told The
Media Line. “These civilian casualties will be grounds for more
retaliation from residents but not necessarily terrorist groups."
Israel has quietly supported the Egyptian military by allowing them to
deploy more troops than allowed in the 1979 Camp David Accords between
Egypt and Israel, as well as tanks and helicopters which are prohibited
according to the agreement. Egypt and Jordan are the only two Arab
countries to have peace treaties with Israel.
“Israel and Egypt have a joint interest in the suppression of militant
Islamists,” Efraim Karsh, a professor at Israel’s Bar Ilan University
told The Media Line. “Sinai is an ongoing operation. It’s not going to
stop. As long as the army remains in power under the same leadership
there will be this cooperation. It doesn’t mean that publicly they won’t
come out against Israel, but privately the cooperation will continue.”
That cooperation could even intensify if terrorists launch attacks at
Israel. Last month, jihadists launched a rocket at Israel which was
intercepted by the Iron-Dome anti-missile system.
“The Egyptian army still has a lot of work to do in Sinai,” Gen. Sameh
Saif Elyazal told The Media Line. "I believe coordination with the
Israeli armed forces will be needed if the terrorists start attacking
Israel from Sinai."
From Israel’s perspective, that cooperation is even more crucial as the
region braces for a possible strike by the United States on Syria after
it’s apparent use of chemical weapons last month. Both Syria and its
ally, Iranian-proxy Hizbullah, the Lebanon-based terrorist organization,
have threatened to hit Israel in retaliation if or when Syria is struck
by the US. Israel wants to make sure that Egypt, the largest Arab
country, stays out of any regional confrontation.
“The relationship between Israel and Egypt is the cornerstone of
stability and peacemaking in the region,” Israeli foreign ministry
spokesman Yigal Palmor told The Media Line.
Sherif Elhelwa contributed to this report
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Labels: Egypt, Islamism, Israel, Sinai, Terrorism
posted by Pieface @ Sunday, September 08, 2013
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