Israel will pay heavy price for its cooperation with Al-Sisi, predict intelligence analysts

DEBKAfile, an Israeli military intelligence website based in Jerusalem, has argued in a report that Israel will pay a heavy price for its continued security coordination with Egypt’s Minister of Defence Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi. Such cooperation, predict the site’s analysts, will backfire.

The website pointed out that the rocket attacks on Eilat are the price that the Israeli government pays for its cooperation and coordination with Al-Sisi. It is alleged that militant groups, such as Ansar Bait Al-Maqdis (“Helpers of Jerusalem”) respond to Egyptian army operations by firing rockets across the border at Eilat.

DEBKA added that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Minister of Defence Moshe Ya’alon agreed for the second time to hand over the Sinai and Gaza security files to Al-Sisi. The Egyptian military operations in Sinai have had a negative impact on Eilat, which has become a hostage to the situation in Sinai, it is claimed.

Although the Israeli government agreed to amend the Camp David treaty by allowing the deployment of more Egyptian troops in Sinai, DEBKA believes that the Knesset should have been given the chance to discuss the issue first. “That did not happen,” said the report.