Amayreh: On whose behalf is Egypt savaging the people of Gaza?

By Khalid Amayreh

Occupied Palestine

An influx of hair-raising stories keeps coming from the Egyptian side of the Rafah border terminal. Nearly all these stories underscore the degrading treatment meted out to Gazans, already thoroughly savaged by the manifestly criminal siege imposed by Israel on the coastal enclave in coordination with several regional and international players, including Egypt itself.

In fact, according to testimonies collected from Gazans who have been in the "Egyptian hell," the Egyptian treatment of some Gazans is far worse than that which is accorded to them by the Israel.

This is more than disgraceful. It is criminal.

A few weeks ago, a Gazan woman died while waiting on the Egyptian border. True, death is an act of God, but it can also be the result of criminal negligence and degrading treatment, especially if the dead is ill.

A reliable Gaza journalist told this writer that his brother, who had been to Egypt, was left without food for four days. The Egyptians normally give no explanation why they behave toward the people of Gaza they way they do.

More to the point, it seems that the Egyptian authorities are generally treating all Palestinians visiting or traveling through Egypt as guilty until proven otherwise. This insolent and brutal policy is pursued under the pretext security.

Well, we don't dispute Egypt's rights to protect its security. Egypt's security is our security and Palestinians are the last people on earth who would think of undermining the security of an Arab-Muslim country, let alone Egypt.

However, torturing Palestinians, occasionally to death, in no way serves the security of Egypt. On the contrary, it seriously undermines the trust and good-will of a neighboring and brotherly people, without which no security precautions can be effective.

We know that the Egyptian regime despises Hamas because of the latter's Islamic ideology. We also know that the regime in Cairo is worried that Hamas's successes in the Gaza Strip could have a positive impact on the Muslim Brotherhood, Egypt's main opposition group.

Having said that, there still is no justification for incriminating and savaging all Gazans since the only benefiter of this stupid and unnecessary discourse is Israel , the enemy of both Egypt and the Palestinians.

More to the point, far from seeking to justify Egypt's degrading treatment of a people thoroughly tormented by Israel's Nazi-like oppression, Egypt has a legal, moral and religious duty to facilitate Gazans' movement through its territory.

Since God in His infinite wisdom willed that Gaza would be bordering Egypt, who does the Egyptian regime think it is to savage the people of Gaza when ever they need to travel abroad to Egypt or through Egypt for reasons of study, medical treatment or business.

So, what are these oppressed people supposed to do to satisfy the morbid whims of the Egyptian regime? Fly to another galaxy? Commit collective suicide? Or become cheap informers and spies for Israel just to survive?

We realize that Egypt is having a deep security coordination with Israel, the very entity that makes every effort to undermine Egyptian security, economy and strength. This coordination is a scandalous reality just as the PA-Israeli security coordination with Israel is a scandalous reality, even to pornographic proportions.

A security coordination between Egypt and racist entity means one thing, that Egypt views Israel as a friend and ally while viewing the people of Gaza, and probably Palestinians in general, as enemies or at least potential enemies.

In the final analysis, the Egyptian-Israeli security coordination, and whatever other tacit understandings the two sides might have, are not directed against Ivory Coast or Columbia , but against the Palestinian people, especially the Islamic camp.

Such a poisoned discourse can only be the result of moral blindness on the part of the Egyptian regime, which is probably the worst and most corrupt Egypt has had since the great Pharaohs.

As to Hamas, the Egyptian regime should realize that Hamas is a democratically-elected movement whose legitimacy stems, not from foreign bribes and handouts in order to protect foreign interests, but rather from the popular support it enjoys which manifested itself through ballot boxes.

Whether the Egyptian regime likes it or not, Hamas is the choice of a huge number of Palestinians, and plots, whether coming from Ramallah, or Cairo, or Washington, won't succeed in marginalizing Hamas.

Indeed, there can be no real and durable peace in occupied Palestine without Hamas and other like-minded Palestinian groups which insist on and strive for the restoration of Palestinian rights and preservation of Palestinian national dignity.

It is probably our destiny as a people to endure and withstand, not only the crimes of the enemy, but also the betrayal, stupidity and conspiracies of our supposed brothers and friends.
We will not flee from our fate.

However, the traitors and hypocrites who have chosen to be cheap slaves serving the interests of foreign powers in exchange for a few million dollars paid by the evil empire of our time must know that their place in history will be no better than that of the worse traitors and quislings, like Abi Rughal, Iban al Alqami, and Abdullah al Saghir.

Hence, savaging and torturing innocent Palestinians on Israel's behalf will not bring any glory for Egypt, nor endear the Egyptian regime to its own masses. The opposite is quite true. It will generate contempt for the regime and nothing but contempt.

Mubarak and his regime will go away, sooner or later. He will be remembered as the leader of the largest and most powerful Arab country, who has helped Israel starve, torment, savage and kill his fellow Muslims across the border.

History will not show mercy to a tyrant who has not shown the slightest mercy even toward his own people, let alone the Palestinians.

But history's treatment of tyrants and evil dictators, though important and serves as a lesson for later generations, is nothing compared to what is awaiting these scoundrels on the Day of Judgment.

In surat Ibrahim (Abraham), the Almighty shows us what will be awaiting oppressors:

"Think not that God does not heed the deeds of those who do wrong. He but gives them respite against a Day when their eyes will fixedly stare in horror.

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Flashback:

"A first time PTT reader might be forgiven for thinking your words were written by the Jerusalem Post's Khalid Abu Toameh."

Jeff Blankfort

On December 31st, 2009 at 23:01:

Haitham,

I entered this conversation soemtime after you had initiated it and have just gone back to see if what others had criticized you for writing you had actually said and it turns out that they were correct:

For example, you wrote:

"…Why do we ignore the fact that the PA asked Egypt to close Rafah border and blame Egypt (not to forget Israel)? Why in the world any country open its borders without any regulations? …"

I find all of those statements of your mind boggling. First, do you really think that Egypt would close the Rafah border because the PA asked them to? If you do, you are totally out of touch with reality. If the PA hardly has any credibility or power within the West Bank, do you really think that Mubarak would listen to anything that Abbas would have to say?

You go on:

"Let's assume the border is open, wont you have to pass through passport regulations at your country? That's the case everywhere. So, who decide if you or me can leave Gaza or not? What if I was a criminal running away from my country, how would Egyptians know? This is the responsibility of PA and national boarder police, which is NOT Hamas and which Hamas refusing to install back."

You write about the responsibility of the PA and the border police to monitor the borders. That you can do so when the PA forces do absolutely nothing to prevent the Israeli occupation forces from entering Palestinian towns and villages and assassinating or arresting whatever Palestinians they choose, do nothing to guard the non-violent demonstrators against the wall, but who were there to suppress demonstrations by West Bank Palestinians in support of their brothers and sisters in Gaza during Cast Lead, is equally unbelievable, but that, sadly, is not the end of it.

You write:

"So, keeping just the above example in mind, why would Egypt open the boarders? At the end of the day they have the right to protect their citizens…"

Do you believe that the dictator Mubarak gives a damn about protecting Egypt's citizens?. Are you serious?

And then, finally, after making a series of assumptions about the tunnels, you write, "If this is not enough reason for Egypt to construct this iron wall, I don't know what can be a good reason."

It seems to me, after reading this several times, that you are justifying the building of the wall and blocking the tunnels. I am sure the Gazans will appreciate that sign of your support for them.

Haitham, your undisguised hatred of Hamas has obviously clouded your thinking.

A first time PTT reader might be forgiven for thinking your words were written by the Jerusalem Post's Khalid Abu Toameh.

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