Did Egypt Get Involved in Israeli Assassinations in Gaza in Exchange for Economic Support?

Recent Israeli fighter jets raided Gaza, killing several Palestinians including leaders of the Islamic Jihad Movement, Palestinian sources questioned the possibility of Egypt’s involvement.

More than 15 Palestinians were killed and others were injured during intense Israeli airstrikes on Gaza. Israeli forces later assassinated two more individuals, and the military operation continued the next day, resulting in another Palestinian fatality.

Al-Quds Brigades, the armed wing of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad Movement, announced the killing of three of its leaders, their wives, and several of their children in Israeli airstrikes on Gaza.

Still worse, the Israeli Occupation has killed a sixth senior leader of Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) in an air strike in the Gaza Strip, as fighting between them escalated, according to BBC.

It said Iyad al-Hassani had directed the militant group’s operations since his predecessor was killed on Tuesday.

Friday’s strike, which medics said also killed another person, followed a barrage of rockets fired from Gaza, some of which reached near Jerusalem (al-Quds).

The BBC stated that chances of an imminent ceasefire appeared slim after the exchange.

 

What Happened?

Palestinian activists raised concerns about whether Egypt deliberately disclosed the whereabouts of the Jihad leaders to the Israeli Occupation or indirectly obtained the information through surveillance of communications between the two parties.

According to Palestinian sources, the Jihad leaders who were assassinated by the Israeli Occupation were scheduled to travel to Egypt on the same day they were killed, based on agreements and guarantees from Egyptian intelligence, but they were targeted anyway.

The sources explained that the reason the Islamic Jihad leaders were in their homes was that they were preparing to travel to Egypt at 9 a.m. on May 9, 2023, to meet with Egyptian intelligence to discuss matters of calm, and they had been reassured by the latter.

Two things fueled the questions and increased speculations of accusing Egypt through social media.

First, Hebrew media reported 24 hours before the attack about a meeting between Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Sharm el-Sheikh on May 8, 2023.

Second, Israeli radio confirmed that “Tel Aviv” had informed Egypt of the assassination of the three al-Quds Brigades leaders, but only after it had been executed, stating that the message arrived in Cairo minutes after the first airstrike on Gaza.

Due to these Palestinian and Arab accusations, the hashtag about Egyptian Intelligence spread and trended in Egypt on May 9, 2023, amid allegations of their responsibility for the killing of the leaders of the Jihad Movement, as well as their wives and children.

This prompted committees and supporters of the Egyptian authorities to respond and deny these accusations, while others resorted to hurling insults at those who accused the Egyptian intelligence of colluding with Israelis.

Palestinian websites in Gaza quoted local sources on May 9, 2023, stating that the military leaders of Islamic Jihad who were martyred had been in hiding for two months. Egypt had informed them to come to Cairo to discuss a ceasefire with the Israeli Occupation.

Palestinian journalists in Gaza stated: “When they went to bid farewell to their families before their departure, they were targeted by airstrikes,” and they wondered: “Who leaked this information to Israel?”

A source from the Islamic Jihad Movement confirmed to BBC on May 9, 2023, that the leaders who were assassinated, along with several political members, were supposed to travel to Cairo on the same day for a visit to hold discussions with officials from Egyptian intelligence.

A member of the Union of Muslim Scholars, described the situation on Twitter, saying: “This confirms, for the thousandth time, that Arab intelligence agencies and security apparatuses were created to serve occupiers, usurpers, enemies of the nation, and the religion. They are treacherous agents who do not work for the benefit of their own people but for their enemies.”

According to a source from the Palestinian resistance, news about the resistance leaders traveling to Egypt “is not true, and the planned travel was for members of the political office of the Jihad movement.”

This is despite Al-Quds newspaper and BBC confirmation that those who were assassinated by the Israeli Occupation were preparing to travel with a delegation from the political office of the movement outside of Gaza.

Egyptian media outlets and pro-authority satellite channels sought to focus on the information that their travel to Egypt was not planned.

 

Is Egypt Involved?

An Arab diplomat told Al-Estiklal that there are possibilities of Egypt’s involvement in guiding “Israel” regarding the Jihad leaders, either intentionally or through negligence, that allowed “Tel Aviv” to spy on Egyptian intelligence communications with the Jihad leaders to determine their whereabouts and assassinate them.

He questioned, preferring not to reveal his name: “Is it possible that behind the assassination of the resistance leaders, there is Israeli economic support for the economically collapsing regime of Abdel Fattah el-Sisi? And there were solutions proposed by Israelis to support Egypt?!”

Following the Aqaba Summit on February 26, 2023, “Tel Aviv” leaked information about its efforts to support Egypt’s collapsing economy, in order to prevent the collapse of the regime and as a reward for its participation in fighting the Palestinian resistance under the pretext of “calmness.”

The correspondent of the Israeli Kan 11 channel, during coverage of the situation in Egypt and the Aqaba Summit, mentioned that in “Israel,” they plan to enhance movements that would boost the Egyptian economy within the framework of bilateral relations.

The correspondent gave an example by stating that Israeli economic delegations would visit Egypt to revive its collapsing economy, similar to a previous visit by a delegation of Israeli businessmen led by the then Director of Intelligence (current Foreign Minister) Eli Cohen to Sharm el-Sheikh in 2021.

He confirmed that the matter is under consideration and will include “expanding trade with Egypt and increasing the number of flights on the Sharm el-Sheikh route for Israeli tourists,” in order to support Cairo’s economy.

It was noteworthy that hours before the assassination of the Jihad leaders, the Israeli Occupation approved on May 8, 2023, a plan to expand the pipeline network to increase gas exports to Egypt, in a project costing 900 million shekels.

The pipeline will stretch for 65 kilometers to the border area with Egypt and will transport six billion cubic meters of gas annually, boosting Cairo’s resources.

“Israel” already supplies Egypt with gas from its offshore fields, and both sides signed an agreement with the European Union in June 2022 to enhance exports to Europe.

On February 27, 2023, “Israel” announced a six-month delay in all plans for developing gas exports to Egypt until April 2024, citing a “technical flaw” in the project.

However, these plans have suddenly been accelerated now.

At that time, the Israeli economic Bizportal website, specializing in energy news, mentioned that the announcement of the postponement of the gas export plan through Egypt had a significant impact on the partnerships of gas companies such as NewMed Energy, Tamar Petroleum, Ratio Energies, and Isramco.

However, an Egyptian diplomatic source dismissed in an interview with Al-Estiklal that Egypt’s involvement was rumored in the assassination of these three leaders and their families, whether through the transfer of information or through “Tel Aviv” spying on Cairo’s communications.

He explained that “Israel” tracks the resistance leaders in Gaza using highly advanced espionage techniques, including satellites, modern devices, drones, and spies, and it is likely that “Tel Aviv” monitored their return to their homes through any of these means and bombed them at dawn.

The Egyptian Foreign Ministry condemned the Israeli attacks in a statement, stating that they “escalate the situation in a way that may spiral out of control and undermine the efforts to achieve calmness.”

According to The New Arab, on May 9, 2023, informed Egyptian sources stated that Cairo is leaning towards suspending mediation efforts between the Israeli Occupation and Palestinian resistance factions.

This decision was prompted by the strong anger of the officials involved in the mediation from the Egyptian side due to the practices of the Israeli government, led by Benjamin Netanyahu, following the aggression on Gaza.

They stated that there is a state of confusion within the Egyptian mediation team in the General Intelligence Agency, accompanied by significant discontent from Cairo.

The officials in Cairo believe that the Israeli Occupation officials are deliberately misleading the Egyptian mediator.

They pointed out that a team of Egyptian officials is advocating for immediate intervention through mediation to stabilize the situation before it escalates into a full-scale war.

However, another team advocates for the postponement of Egyptian intervention or mediation until the officials of the Israeli Occupation realize the magnitude of their mistake amidst the escalating motivation of the factions in Gaza and the high possibility of the Lebanese front, represented by Hezbollah, getting involved.

It has been noted that those who support the deferral of Egyptian mediation also believe that it would not be fruitful in the initial stage of the expected factional escalation following the Israeli attack on the sector.

It was explained that the opinion favoring the deferral of Egyptian mediation also believes that it will not be fruitful in the initial stage of the expected escalation of hostilities following the Israeli attack on the Gaza Strip.

According to the source, the Islamic Jihad Movement will insist on a violent response. This scene, with all its details, will put Egypt in a difficult position regarding its responsibility if it does not respond to its role as a mediator.

 

Suspicious Role

Palestinians have previously accused Egyptian intelligence of playing a suspicious role regarding the Palestinian cause during times of war with the Israeli Occupation under the current regime of Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, as well as the former regime of Hosni Mubarak. This has led to the defense of the social media committees.

Following the sudden Zionist aggression on Gaza on August 5, 2022, which resulted in the martyrdom of 15 individuals, social media platforms were filled with curses directed at what activists called “the treachery of the Egyptian mediator.”

Palestinian activists described the Israeli aggression on Gaza after the intervention of the Egyptian intelligence as “collusion” or an “Israeli message of contempt” towards the Egyptian mediator.

Abu Mujahid, the coordinator of the Joint Chamber at that time, stated, “The enemy has betrayed the Egyptian mediation, and from here we declare no mediation after this moment.”

Observers have affirmed that the role of the Egyptian mediator does not exceed “a functional role that serves as a cover for advancing the Israeli Occupation plans.”

Palestinian media outlets reported at that time that the Islamic Jihad Movement scolded and embarrassed the Egyptian mediator in a call that lasted less than a minute before abruptly ending the conversation. The mediator intervened after the aggression, demanding restraint.

Dawood Shihab, the media official of the Islamic Jihad Movement, revealed that “an hour before the treacherous operation, there were contacts with the Egyptian side, who informed us that meetings with the occupation were scheduled for August 7, 2022, to defuse the crisis. However, later on, Israel launched its aggression on Gaza.”

Palestinian political analyst Mustafa al-Sawwaf stated that “the Egyptian mediation has become a laughingstock for the Israeli Occupation, its leaders, and those who work on exploiting it to achieve their goals.”

The same pattern repeated during the rule of former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, who implicitly expressed his approval of the Israeli aggression on Gaza in 2008.

This was evidenced by the meeting between Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni in Cairo prior to the strike, with Mubarak, his Foreign Minister at the time, Ahmed Aboul Gheit, and the then head of Egyptian intelligence, Omar Suleiman, as documented in a previous report by Al-Estiklal.