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Monday, July 27, 2015
MEMRI: Egyptian Writer 'Ali Salem: Israel Has No Intention Of Occupying Sinai; Cooperation Between Egyptian And Israeli Peoples Will Benefit The Region

MEMRI: Special Dispatch | 6115 | July 27, 2015
Egyptian Writer 'Ali Salem: Israel Has No Intention Of Occupying Sinai;
Cooperation Between Egyptian And Israeli Peoples Will Benefit The Region

On July 8, 2015, following the series of brutal attacks carried out in the
Sinai by terrorist organizations, especially Ansar Bait Al-Maqdis, which is
affiliated with the Islamic State (ISIS), the Egyptian daily Al-Masri
Al-Yawm published an article by Egyptian playwright, author and political
commentator 'Ali Salem in which he criticized the Egyptian government's
neglect of the peninsula. According to Salem, the Egyptians did not develop
the Sinai due to fears by the country's elite that Israel would occupy the
territory, which would leave any development projects in the peninsula in
Israeli hands. Salem decisively argued that Israel would not undertake such
a foolish act.

Salem also criticized Egypt's reluctance to normalize cultural relations
with Israel out of fear that Israeli cultural influence would endanger the
Egyptian regime. He argued that it was actually the Arab Spring revolutions
that toppled Arab regimes, as opposed to cultural ties with Israel, which he
argued would benefit the region.

Salem further said that Egypt would defeat the terrorism in the Sinai and
that Israel does not exploit Egyptian violations of the peace treaty to
create tension between the countries because it looks forward to improving
relations in the long term. Salem concluded that the regional situation
would improve once the Egyptian and Israeli peoples cooperated with each
other.

Following are excerpts from the article:

Israel Will Not Reoccupy The Sinai

"After Egyptian President Sadat recovered the Sinai by way of war and peace,
there was peace in Egypt. However, Israel's withdrawal from Sinai to the
international Egyptian border as a result of the peace treaty between the
two countries did not alleviate fears by intellectuals and regime officials
regarding the fate of the Sinai...

"Some thought of many ideas on how to restore and develop the Sinai
Peninsula, but many members of the elites believed that Israel would
reoccupy the Sinai, reiterating that Israelis are the enemies, are evil, and
hate us.

"Additionally, some declared honestly that when Israel seeks to reoccupy the
Sinai, it would be hard to defend, which is why any construction in the
Sinai actually meant handing over territory rich in agricultural,
industrial, and tourism projects to the enemy. This real fear resulted in
all the restrictions we have placed on the Sinai..."

Read The Full Report
http://www.memri.org/report/en/0/0/0/0/0/0/8677.htm

For assistance, please contact MEMRI at memri@memri.org.
P.O. Box 27837, Washington, DC 20038-7837
Phone: (202) 955-9070 | Fax: (202) 955-9077

The Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI) is an independent,
non-profit organization that translates and analyzes the media of the Middle
East. Copies of articles and documents cited, as well as background
information, are available on request.

MEMRI holds copyrights on all translations. Materials may only be used with
proper attribution.

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