Egypt seeks to return to center stage | Smadar Perry
This week, Donald Trump's envoy, Jared Kushner, met with Egyptian President Sisi and senior Hamas officials in El Alamein — the first such meeting since the ceasefire agreement. Egypt appears to be reclaiming its central role in mediation with Hamas, amidst tension and hidden competition with Qatar. Yedioth Ahronoth's Arab world analyst, Smadar Perry, explains the current state of Israel-Egypt relations, the causes of the rift between Qatar and Egypt, and the competition between the countries for mediator status.
Listen to "The Headline" — the daily news podcast of ynet. This time: on Egypt's efforts to return to center stage and its role as a mediator between Israel and Hamas.
"Egypt never gave up its status as a mediator, even when Qatar was at its peak, and even when the whole world moved away from them. Egypt is constantly in the picture. The peace with Egypt is a missed opportunity, a great failure for Israel. Sisi had a closed meeting with American Jews, and according to people who were there, he told them about internal talks he was holding with Benjamin Netanyahu. At a certain point, according to him, Benjamin Netanyahu stopped these talks. Today in Egypt, they are waiting for the leadership in Israel to change, like in other countries in the region," says Yedioth Ahronoth's Arab world analyst, Smadar Perry.
"The rift between Qatar and Egypt started in 2017. Back then, Saudi Arabia announced a complete severance of ties with Qatar, and slowly other countries joined, including Egypt. The goal was to isolate Qatar without any assistance and cut off all contact. This severance lasted 4 years, but to this day, for example, the Al Jazeera channel is not broadcast in many countries in the region. The Egyptians are concerned about the sponsorship that the Qataris provide to the Muslim Brotherhood and specifically to Hamas. Khalil al-Hayya lives there, for example. But we are seeing a slow migration of Hamas members towards Turkey, and this may contribute to a warming of relations."
If you missed it: you are invited to listen to another episode of ours, on how Gen Z is affecting the labor market.
