Egypt Becomes Flashpoint Over Gaza

Gaza - Egypt Border (Image from EUBAM - Rafah)

From The Wall Street Journal:

RAFAH, Egypt -- As Israeli troops push into Gaza, Egypt has become a flashpoint in the deepening divide between moderate Arab leaders, backed by the West, and their more extreme rivals, including Hamas and Lebanon's Hezbollah, backed by Iran and Syria.

That has put President Hosni Mubarak in a suddenly precarious position. Widespread protests across the Middle East, as well as condemnation from radical Islamist leaders from Beirut to Tehran, have targeted Mr. Mubarak since Israel launched its aerial attack nine days ago.

Mr. Mubarak is under intense popular pressure across the Arab world to open its border crossing here with Gaza, the only land route the sliver of territory has with a country other than Israel. The border is currently only open to emergency medical aid going in and a trickle of wounded Palestinian patients coming out.

But Mr. Mubarak has plenty of reasons to want to keep his border sealed. Hamas has long been an Egyptian irritant. The group traces its roots to the Muslim Brotherhood, Egypt's own Islamic political opposition. Egypt has outlawed the group, a transnational Sunni Muslim movement. Over the weekend, riot police clashed with pro-Hamas protesters in Cairo and arrested dozens, including members of the Brotherhood.

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My Comment: Egypt has always had an extremist Islamist opposition. Egypt's response to the war in Gaza is rooted in it's own internal politics and its war against Islamic extremists that are supported by Hamas.