Both the Egyptian and the Gazan public’s have begun to blame one another for their woes. Many activists in the Egyptian social media have begun to view Gaza as the source of Sinai’s security problems, pointing the finger at Gaza for every terrorist attack or kidnapping before evidence of Palestinian involvement even emerges. Immediately after the abductions, allegations began to appear in the Egyptian social media implicating the Dughmush clan from the southern Gaza Strip. Calls emerged for the immediate closure of the Rafah crossing and a large scale operation against the smuggling tunnels connecting Gaza and Egypt. The public resentment was such that Hamas Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh felt obligated to condemn the kidnappings, proclaiming Hamas’ respect for Egyptian sovereignty in Sinai and refuting Palestinian involvement.

For their part, commentators in the Gazan social media protested the allegations of the Egyptian street, asking, “Why are Gazans the first to pay the price of security problems in the Sinai?” and asserting that “in the past, we were the scapegoat of Israel, and now, we’re the scapegoat of Egypt.” Soaring Gazan expectations that the Muslim Brotherhood’s rise to power in Egypt would bring an improvement in their standard of living was soon followed by disillusionment, disappointment, and frustration. They now accuse Morsi of being worse for Gaza than Mubarak. Some Egyptians and Gazans argue that the Gazan festering resentment will soon explode.

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