An Israeli research centre said on Monday that the United States and Europe have waged “a strategic blow to Egypt’s president, Abdul Fattah Al-Sisi and an embarrassing slap to his face.”
The Jerusalem Centre for Public Affairs, which is run by Dore Gold, the senior political advisor to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, on Monday published a report criticising the way that Western countries, including the United States and Europe, refused to listen to the justifications put forward by Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry for Egypt’s recognition of the Libyan government in Tobruk The report suggested that Western countries were also sceptical of Egypt’s motives in providing the Libyans with weapons, and are starting to question whether or not they should support Sisi in the war he intends to wage in Libya.
According to the Centre, Shoukry had to return to Egypt after his unsuccessful visit to the United Nations with his tail between his legs.
The Centre said that the international community’s prioritisation of the need to find a political solution to the Libyan crisis has pulled the rug from under Sisi’s feet and narrows his margins of political manoeuvre.
The report also noted that adopting a political solution to the Libyan crisis would be akin “to legitimi[sing] the role of the Muslim Brotherhood in managing Libya’s affairs.”
The Centre launched an attack on the Dawn of Libya militia, describing them as the military arm of the Muslim Brotherhood an who plan to put the country under Islamist rule.
The Centre described the GCC’s position on the matter as “disappointing” saying they prioritise Qatar at the expense of Egypt, and pointing out that their position has increased the embarrassment of Sisi and his regime that has been “betting on [the GCC’s] support to eliminate the Muslim Brotherhood”.