ISRAEL SUPPORTS MILITARY RULE IN EGYPT
Tel Aviv, 10 Syawwal 1434/17 August 2013 (MINA) – Israeli writer, Yossi Melman, has said that Israel’s main concern is the possible downfall of the military regime in Egypt. He has also said that Israel is fearful that chaos could lead the country into civil war.
Melman made clear that Israel was not concerned that this would undermine Egypt’s development or independence, but said this “could render null the peace treaty that has brought relative calm to the border for more than 30 years.”
In his article in the Jerusalem Post, Melman wrote: “Israel’s primary concerns regarding Egypt are the possible fall of the military regime or a descent into civil war,” according to Middle East Monitor (MEMO) report quoted by Mi’raj News Agency (MINA).
Melman asserted that Israel was treading carefully as it is unable to do anything significant to protect its borders if the peace treaty is annulled. “From a diplomatic and military perspective, Israel is following events in Egypt with great trepidation, in the knowledge that there is little it can do.”
Therefore, Melman said, “Israel has been engaging in some diplomatic lobbying, particularly in Washington and a number of European capitals, with the intent of persuading those governments against rushing to step up their condemnation of the latest Egyptian military operation to remove the pro-Muslim Brotherhood protesters from the streets of Cairo and other cities.”
The senior Israeli writer continued, “since (they) ousted President Mohamed Morsi six weeks ago, Israel has been secretly manoeuvring via friendly nations, deploying heavy diplomatic leverage to stop Western governments, first and foremost the United States, from denouncing the overthrow by the Egyptian security forces, deterring them from calling it a ‘massacre.'”
He said that calling it a massacre “weakens the military-backed Egyptian government and strengthens the will of the Muslim Brotherhood to continue its policy of brinkmanship.”
Melman asserted that most European countries support the military coup. He said that military rule “for now enjoys the support of most of the Egyptian people.” (T/P012/E1)
Mi’raj News Agency (MINA)
