The tense relationship between Israel and Egypt is on the verge of collapse following weeks of a 'deepening chill' amid the IDF's war on Hamas in the Gaza Strip, the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported Saturday.
As per the report, ties have reached a slump not seen in nearly two decades as the "so-called cold peace has further cooled both on the governmental and civilian levels," Ofir Winter of the Institute for National Security Studies (INSS) was quoted as saying.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has not spoken to his Egyptian counterpart Abdel Fattah al-Sisi in weeks, with the latter refusing to take calls from the prime minister, Egyptian officials told WSJ.
Egypt convinced of secret Israeli plan to expel Palestinians
Further, it was reported that Egypt is suspicious of Israeli plans for a post-war Gaza, with the government in Cairo "convinced" of a secret Israeli plan to expel the Palestinians from the Strip to the Sinai Peninsula.
Earlier this week, the Jerusalem Post reported that Cairo issued a public warning to Israel that the ties between the two countries were at risk over IDF control of the Philadelphi Corridor, a narrow 14-kilometer buffer zone that runs along Egypt’s border with Gaza.
“It must be strictly emphasized that any Israeli move in this direction will lead to a serious threat to Egyptian-Israeli relations,” the head of the State Information Services (SIS) Diaa Rashwan said in a statement he issued.
“Egypt,” Rashwan said, “is capable of defending its interests and sovereignty over its land and borders and will not mortgage it in the hands of a group of extremist Israeli leaders who seek to drag the region into a state of conflict and instability."
"Egypt is capable of defending its interests and sovereignty over its land and borders and will not mortgage it in the hands of a group of extremist Israeli leaders.”
Diaa Rashwan
Sisi also accused Israel this week of carrying out procedures that obstruct the entry of aid from the Rafah crossing between Egypt and Gaza.
"This is part of how they exert pressure on the issue of releasing the hostages," he added.