AFPThe closed gate of the border crossing between the Gaza Strip and Egypt, at Rafah
NOS News•today, 9:39 PM•Adjusted today, 9:51 PM
It seems to be the only way for Gazans to escape the violence in the war between Israel and Hamas: the border strip of more than 12 kilometers that the Gaza Strip shares with Egypt. The problem? The border at Rafah is closed and Egypt is not considering opening it for the time being. The country unwillingly plays a key role in the war.
On Wednesday, as the humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip continued to deteriorate after the failure of its only power plant, it was out of the question for Egypt to set up safe corridors for refugees. That position did not change today after the Israeli army’s call for more than a million Gazans to leave south, which only increased pressure on the Rafah border crossing.
In this article, read about nine terms to (better) understand the war between Israel and Hamas
In theory, opening the border seems like the simplest solution to avert a humanitarian disaster, but in practice it presents Egypt with a devilish dilemma: keeping the border closed risks a humanitarian catastrophe. When it opens, there is plenty of fear of internal unrest.
Hamas versus Egypt
For example, there is the relationship between Egypt and Hamas. Although Egypt has regularly mediated between Israel and Hamas in recent years, the militant Palestinian movement that controls the Gaza Strip is anything but an ally of Egypt.
This has to do with the close ties between Hamas and the Muslim Brotherhood. That organization was labeled as terrorist and banned in Egypt after the Muslim Brotherhood lost power following an army coup more than ten years ago. That coup was led by current President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi.
EPAEgyptian President Sisi
With a flow of refugees from Gaza, Egypt fears that Hamas fighters affiliated with the Muslim Brotherhood will come with them. It is also the reason why Egypt has kept the Rafah border crossing largely closed since Hamas took over in 2007.
In addition, Egypt itself has often emphasized that a massive flow of refugees from the Gaza Strip to Egypt is not in the interests of the Palestinian cause, for which there is plenty of support among the Egyptian population. The question is whether the refugees will ever be able to return to the Gaza Strip.
NOS
The influential Al-Azhar University in Cairo, the oldest and most influential institution in Sunni Islam, issued a press statement on Wednesday urging Palestinians that it was better to die as “heroes on their own soil, than on that soil as to leave a prey for the occupiers.”
No compromises
Furthermore, Egypt has been struggling for years in the Sinai desert bordering the Gaza Strip with violence from groups affiliated with terrorist organizations such as Islamic State and Al-Qaeda. The country fears that Hamas fighters will strengthen those groups if the border with the Gaza Strip is open, explains Maurits Berger, professor of Islam and the West at Leiden University.
President Sisi stressed on Tuesday that there will be “no compromises” when it comes to his country’s national security, “under any circumstances”.
Sisi walks a fine line in everything he says on the issue, given the widespread support for the Palestinian cause among the Egyptian population and the fact that presidential elections are two months away. At the same time, Egypt was the first country to conclude a peace treaty with Israel in 1979 after the Camp David Accords. Since then, the countries have been working closely together diplomatically.
Israel’s call for Gazans to leave sparked panic:
Gaza Strip residents flee: ‘We are being driven out’
The independent Egyptian news site Mada Masr underlined earlier this week that the Sisi government is facing complex issues that require quick answers.
The site spoke to anonymous sources with high positions within the Egyptian government. One of those sources said that Egypt does not want a repeat of what happened fifteen years ago, when the wall at the Rafah border was partly blown up during a storm and thousands of people were able to commute between Gaza and Egypt for weeks.
Shelters at the border
Nevertheless, the country has already started preparing shelters near the border. According to journalist Joost Scheffers, who has lived in Cairo for years, Egypt is now seriously considering a new storm.
“The army has also been sent to the border region, but the question is what those soldiers – especially conscripts – will do if Palestinians actually cross the border,” says Scheffers. “Plus: what has now been set up is aimed at a controlled flow of refugees. This is a difficult-to-access, sparsely populated desert area. In any case, it can be said with certainty that Egypt is not ready for an uncontrolled flow of refugees.”
2023-10-13 19:39:24
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