In a December 1st article by Hassan Tahsin in Saudi Arabia’s Arab News, the columnist complained that Israel has been attacking Egypt - “the biggest threat to [Israel’s] existence.” - in an assault masterminded by Finance Minister Binyamin Netanyahu. In fact, these attacks include, according to the Saudi column, “...a special [Jewish] prayer every day wishing illness, ruin, death and destruction upon the Egyptians.”
And what is it that makes Egypt a target for Israel, according to the Arab News piece? “It is Egypt's continued support and backing of the Palestinian struggle for independence....” the article explained, including Cairo’s support of PLO leader Yasser Arafat.
However, the article identified another element that may seem surprising considering the 23-year-old formal peace treaty between Egypt and Israel: It is Egypt’s “refusal to normalize relations with Israel that irks the Jewish state,” Tahsin wrote.
The proximate cause for Israel’s current “attack” on Egypt, the Saudi newspaper article said, is “the public opinion poll that revealed that most Europeans thought Israel was the greatest threat to world peace and security.... Israel decided that its best way out was to attack Egypt. ...Israel is hoping for a reckless reaction on the part of Egypt that would help it overcome its current crisis with the EU.”
Tahsin detailed the forms he believed Israeli “attacks” on Egypt took: “Numerous plots have been hatched to destroy Egypt's economy. Israel concentrated on finding alternatives to the Suez Canal.... by digging a new canal that links the Red Sea with the Mediterranean.... Since such a project would be difficult to implement, it proposed to build a railway line to transport goods and containers from Eilat to Ashdod Harbor.... Israel went ahead and reactivated the oil pipeline that begins in Eilat and ends at Asqalan [Ashkelon] in order to threaten Egypt's Sumeed pipeline.”
And then the writer identified the Israeli culprit by name: “These projects in fact correspond with Binyamin Netanyahu's theory that the best war that can be launched against Egypt is a limited economic war, not a political or military war, because Egypt is poor. If Israel succeeds in reducing the value of the Suez Canal or abolishing its strategic role in global trade, he believes, that will be a deathblow to Egypt.” However, Tahsin reassured his readers, “Netanyahu is quite ignorant of the nature of the Egyptian people and their boundless ability to confront dangers, especially those of economic blockade.”
And what is it that makes Egypt a target for Israel, according to the Arab News piece? “It is Egypt's continued support and backing of the Palestinian struggle for independence....” the article explained, including Cairo’s support of PLO leader Yasser Arafat.
However, the article identified another element that may seem surprising considering the 23-year-old formal peace treaty between Egypt and Israel: It is Egypt’s “refusal to normalize relations with Israel that irks the Jewish state,” Tahsin wrote.
The proximate cause for Israel’s current “attack” on Egypt, the Saudi newspaper article said, is “the public opinion poll that revealed that most Europeans thought Israel was the greatest threat to world peace and security.... Israel decided that its best way out was to attack Egypt. ...Israel is hoping for a reckless reaction on the part of Egypt that would help it overcome its current crisis with the EU.”
Tahsin detailed the forms he believed Israeli “attacks” on Egypt took: “Numerous plots have been hatched to destroy Egypt's economy. Israel concentrated on finding alternatives to the Suez Canal.... by digging a new canal that links the Red Sea with the Mediterranean.... Since such a project would be difficult to implement, it proposed to build a railway line to transport goods and containers from Eilat to Ashdod Harbor.... Israel went ahead and reactivated the oil pipeline that begins in Eilat and ends at Asqalan [Ashkelon] in order to threaten Egypt's Sumeed pipeline.”
And then the writer identified the Israeli culprit by name: “These projects in fact correspond with Binyamin Netanyahu's theory that the best war that can be launched against Egypt is a limited economic war, not a political or military war, because Egypt is poor. If Israel succeeds in reducing the value of the Suez Canal or abolishing its strategic role in global trade, he believes, that will be a deathblow to Egypt.” However, Tahsin reassured his readers, “Netanyahu is quite ignorant of the nature of the Egyptian people and their boundless ability to confront dangers, especially those of economic blockade.”