Hamas: Egypt Gets Involved In Israel-Hamas War
Hamas can now send those wounded in the Israel-Hamas war to Egypt through the Rafah Crossing, according to a report in the L.A. Times. This represents a turnaround from Egypt’s previous policy towards Hamas and is somewhat surprising in light of ongoing hostilities between Egypt and Hamas, which has been tied to the Muslim Brotherhood.
Just earlier today, the Jerusalem Post ran an analysis article suggesting that, while Egypt has publicly condemned Israel’s counterattacks against Hamas in Gaza, Egypt is secretly glad that Israel is taking care of the dirty work of dealing with a Hamas government that causes as many problems for Egypt as they do for Israel.
The JP article quotes Zvi Mazel, Israel’s ambassador to Egypt, saying this about the fighting in the Israel-Hamas conflict:
“Egypt is not in a hurry to see the conflict ended even though it’s always dangerous to have an armed conflict on one’s border. I don’t believe that the Egyptians shed tears when Hamas is being hit by Israel. In the coming days Egypt will probably feel itself forced to be more active in order to show its empathy for the ‘their brethren in Palestine.'”
A related article in The Inquisitr examines U.S. and world reactions — or lack of reaction — to the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict.
The L.A. Times article points out that Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal called upon Egypt and the rest of the Muslim world for help in dealing with the Israel-Hamas war that started when three Israeli teenagers were kidnapped and murdered, and quickly escalated after Israel struck military targets hidden among civilian populations in Gaza. Hamas responded by firing rockets at civilian targets deep within Israel from additional military positions, again attempting to use their own civilians as a sort of human shield.
Meanwhile, Hamas is dealing with problems on its other boarders as ISIS tries to extend the Islamic State — or, as they’ve taken to calling it, the Caliphate. A related report in The Inquisitr examines how ISIS is recruiting western Muslims to its jihad using Twitter and YouTube (Warning: the article includes graphic images of ISIS Tweets).
While Egypt has opened the Rafah Crossing to allow wounded Gazans to be evacuated to Egyptian hospitals, their support of Hamas is believed to be lukewarm, at best. They have, however, predictably condemned Israel’s decision to strike back at Hamas.
According to the L.A. Times, Egyptian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Bard Abdelatty said:
“What is happening in Gaza (in the Israel-Hamas conflict) is disgusting. Israel has to stop its assault on Gaza. However, I call for wisdom from both sides, and Israel has to start intensive talks with the Palestinian government.”
While making a statement condemning Israel’s military actions and opening the border to treat the wounded isn’t exactly a declaration of war, it could easily be perceived as a provocation directed towards Israel and as Egypt taking Hamas’ side in the ongoing Israel-Hamas war.
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