Egypt squanders Gaza war opportunities
Unlike during previous wars in the Gaza Strip, Egypt — distracted by its own internal affairs — is isolated politically while its Gazan neighbors across the border in Rafah find themselves in a dire situation.
CAIRO — On Aug. 1, Egypt decided to fully shut down the Rafah border crossing into the Gaza Strip as Israeli air force, navy and ground artillery pounded Rafah on the Palestinian side a few hundred yards away, in the aftermath of another kidnapping operation executed by Palestinian resistance factions. Among those stranded under fire were Egyptians, Westerners and helpless Palestinian victims of the inhumane Israeli shelling.
On the same day but a few thousand miles to the west, the Tunisian authorities decided not only to shut down the Ras Ajdir border crossing in the face of thousands of Egyptians and other nationalities fleeing Libya's deadly strife, but fended them off using tear gas and warning shots. Several Egyptians were killed amid the stampede and random Libyan fire at the border.
Egypt finally opened the Rafah terminal on Aug. 2 and allowed some of those stranded to cross, while Tunisia cooperated with Egyptian authorities to organize an evacuation fleet from Djerba-Zarzis International Airport for those stranded, but never actually allowed them into Tunisia.
The scenes were staggeringly similar. Regardless of names and coordinates, it was simply a crossing point with innocent victims stranded on the deadly side while a capable regime watches with a smirk and a deck of political cards from the relatively safe side. Well, what goes around comes around, almost instantly.
