CAIRO — Officially, Israel and Egypt appear to have forged civil relations in some regards. The Egyptian public, however, holds a different, much dimmer view of the relationship.

High-ranking officials from both countries meet regularly: Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met in September, and Sisi is set to meet with Israel's energy minister this month in Cairo. Yet attacks and controversy seem to follow each visit by an Egyptian figure to Israel or to the Israeli ambassador in Cairo.

The Egyptian public's backlash in such matters can be considerable. Just ask Mona Prince, the fired English literature professor at Suez Canal University who unsuccessfully ran for president in the March election. Granted, she was already controversial, but her Dec. 3 meeting with Israeli Ambassador David Govrin at the Israeli Embassy in Egypt sparked a wave of attacks and insults from public and media figures who described her as a “traitor.”

Still, Prince appeared Dec. 12 on Israel's Makan 33 public TV channel to comment on the meeting. She said, “Nothing in Egyptian law criminalizes communicating with Israelis. Besides, I don't represent any party and my behavior is legal.”