News
Israel re-opens embassy in Egypt after four-year closure
Israel re-opened its embassy in Egypt’s capital Cairo yesterday after a four-year hiatus, signifying a further increase in cooperation between the two countries.
Israel and Egypt have shared diplomatic relations since signing a 1979 peace treaty. However, Israel’s embassy in Cairo was stormed by thousands of protestors and eventually evacuated in 2011. A skeletal staff returned to Egypt, working out of the ambassador’s residence. Bilateral relations have since improved significantly under the rule of President al-Sisi, who overthrew the Muslim Brotherhood in 2014.
Yesterday, Dore Gold, the Director General of Israel’s Foreign Ministry flew to Cairo and rededicated the new Israeli embassy. He said that Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Egypt’s President Fattah al-Sisi have succeeded in “deflecting the threat, and we are working together for the sake of stability and prosperity in the Middle East.” He added that Egypt “will always be the biggest and most important state in the region.” Yesterday’s ceremony was also attended by a senior official from Egypt’s foreign ministry and the US Ambassador to Egypt.
Israel’s Deputy Foreign Minister Tzipi Hotovely said that the re-opening of the embassy will likely “elevate the relations between our two countries.” She added, “Against the background of regional developments, many opportunities present themselves for cooperation and an enhancement of relations between Israel and states in the region, especially Egypt.”
Meanwhile, on Tuesday Egypt’s army announced that it had launched a “major military operation” against an ISIS affiliate in the Sinai Peninsula, which borders both Israel and the Gaza Strip. Egypt’s army said that it had already killed 56 jihadists from the Sinai Province group, which has routinely attacked Egyptian troops and officials during a long-lasting campaign. However, Israel has also been targeted by the group, with rockets fired into the country earlier this year. Israel and Egypt are thought to closely cooperate with regards to unrest in Sinai. Israel has permitted additional Egyptian forces in the region, despite limits set by the 1979 peace treaty.