Israel and Egypt, once grave enemies, are now actively cooperating against the threat from the Islamic State in Egypt’s Sinai peninsula.
Israel is actively engaging in drone strikes in the Sinai, with the permission of Egypt, according to a Sunday report by Bloomberg. The new relationship also includes intelligence sharing between the two countries and the potential for energy agreements in the near future.
“In this time of turmoil and instability all around the Middle East, it’s very important for reasonable countries to keep some kind of cooperation,” Yuval Steinitz, Israel’s energy minister, told Bloomberg in an interview.
Steinitz’s comments come in response to Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry’s visit to Israel Sunday, the first in nearly a decade. It is believed the visit will pave the way for an upcoming summit between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi.
The renewed ties between the two countries comes at a time of grave necessity. Egypt has quietly battled ISIS’ Wilayat Sinai, or Sinai province, for some time. With the Gaza Strip sharing the southern border with the Sinai, the threat for Israel is also very real, particularly given that ISIS and the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas are reportedly cooperating across the border.
Egypt has been allowed to move tanks, artillery and attack helicopters into the Sinai to fight ISIS while Israel engages in drone strikes — though such actions were prohibited by the 1979 peace accord between the two countries.
Israel and Egypt engaged in a 19-day war in October 1973, which was supported by several other Arab nations. The conflict, commonly referred to as the “Yom Kippur War,” was a resounding Israeli victory. The relationship between Egypt and Israel has been tense ever since, despite coming to an accord at Camp David in 1978.
The historically cold relationship between Israel and Egypt changed in 2013 when el-Sissi took power. He has taken a more pragmatic approach with Egypt’s policy towards Israel — an apparent effort to solidify his place in the international community. In particular, el-Sissi has expressed a desire to help restore peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians. His relationship with Netanyahu is said to be remarkably good, and the two reportedly speak over the phone regularly.
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