Israel

  • Print Friendly, PDF & Email
  • Send to Kindle

After Terrorist Massacre of Egyptians, Cairo Cools on Hamas Even More

by TheTower.org Staff |

The brutal massacre of 21 Egyptian Copts in Libya committed by the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) affected not only the Egyptian attitude towards its western neighbor, but also towards its small eastern neighbor, the Gaza Strip. Although the Egyptian military reaction targeted terrorist strongholds in Libya, Hamas officials understood the message very well: No one should be seen as endangering Egypt’s security and stability.

Egyptian journalist Tawfiq Akasha stated emphatically (Arabic link) that the next step after the attack on Libya is a merciless attack on Gaza terrorist nests, to destroy those he calls “sons of the devil.” Egyptian broadcaster Ahmed Musa made similar remarks, according to the news site Al-Masdar (Arabic link). The messages were clearly understood by the Palestinian public and critically discussed on their social networks. Many Palestinians Facebook users reacted angrily to the remarks by Akasha and Musa and harshly criticized them.

Even if a Libyan-style attack against Hamas by the Egyptian air force is not currently on the agenda, the hint of this option has caused consternation for Hamas’ leadership. Leaders of the Islamic Resistance Movement were quick to condemn the terrible massacre in Libya and stated that they stand next to the “sister” Egypt. Senior Hamas official Moussa Abu Marzouk wrote on his Facebook page that what happened in Libya was a massacre and a crime that any religion can’t agree with.

The Palestinian daily Al-Resalah (Arabic link), a Hamas-backed newspaper in Gaza, was quick to quote in its main headline the words of an Egyptian diplomat who said that Egypt has an interest in reconciliation with Hamas. These developments come two weeks after a new video (Arabic video) released by Hamas’ military wing, the Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades, called on the Egyptian army to consider Israel as a common enemy.

Earlier this month, an Egyptian court declared the Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades, a Hamas paramilitary group, to be a terrorist organization.

 [Photo: euronews (in English) / YouTube ]

tt