by Dr. Reuven Berko
Many Egyptians voted this week for
presidential candidate Abdel Fatah el-Sissi from polling booths set up in cities
with large Egyptian expatriate populations, such as in Turkey and the United
States. Exit polls indicated that Sissi garnered at least 90 percent of the
overseas vote, ahead of the elections in Egypt at the end of the month.
Muslim Brotherhood demonstrators'
street slogans -- "Hamas is in our hearts, Sissi is the son of a dog" -- have
intensified since Egypt outlawed Hamas, and hostility among Islamists toward
Sissi has escalated over Egypt's policy aimed at destroying Hamas' tunnel
infrastructure, which was used to pass along the weapons, trade and cash that
once drove terrorist activities against both Israel and Egypt.
But, despite the thrill of elections,
Sissi hasn't given up on this issue. Speaking to the media these days, he has
latched onto his efforts aimed at combating the Muslim Brotherhood's and Hamas'
terrorist infrastructure. In a nuanced and somewhat alarming manner, Sissi
declared that he would boost troop levels in the Sinai Peninsula for the sake of
both Egyptian and Israeli security while making certain adjustments to the
Egyptian-Israeli peace accords, which, according to the former Egyptian military
chief, "Israel will understand."
Sissi is getting ready to get on both
the national and inter-Arab political stage as the phoenix, the mythologically
regenerative bird, Egyptian-style. The smiley general has appeared in public in
civilian clothes as the a man who, as a child, adopted Gamal Abdel Nasser's
character and vision. In recent interviews (both fascinating and worthwhile to
watch), Sissi spoke in colloquial Arabic, evoked the spirit of Nasser, spoke of
Egypt as "the mother of all Arabs," and touted social and economic
rehabilitation as the heart of the matter. Strengthening inter-Arab relations
was also integral to his vision for the future, as was finding a solution to the
Palestinian problem under the aegis of modern "Mother" Egypt, which boasts
positive, non-dependent relations with the West.
Meanwhile, Qatar's Al-Jazeera, which
openly criticizes Sissi, has continued to incite the masses against the former
general based on arguments that he seized power through a "stick-up" staged by a
military coup against former President Mohammed Morsi and his legal government.
Commentators on Al-Jazeera admitted that Sissi was leading in the early
elections, but argued that overall voter turnout was 4 percent lower (than with
Morsi). The station's spokespeople claimed that Sissi manipulated his supporters
through the media, and that unsupervised polling has helped certain voters
commit voter fraud, voting once abroad and, eventually, once at home.
Al-Jazeera commentators criticized
Sissi's campaign costs, calling them unreasonable compared to previous
elections. The Qatari news outlet "celebrated" Western monitor groups' doubts
regarding their participation in monitoring the elections and their
disappointment in deciding to monitor them at all.
In a sophisticated move that
seamlessly blended with his elections strategy, Sissi led the Palestinians in
("successful") reconciliation efforts in Gaza, representing himself as the
"supreme leader" over the Palestinian issue. He let a senior Hamas official,
Mousa Abu Marzouk, join the process, and recently called on Hamas to restore its
relationship with Egypt. Sissi pursued lenient policy over Egypt's tactical and
intelligence relations with Hamas' top officials at the Rafah crossing, without
giving up on his country's security interests on the Egyptian mainland and in
the Sinai Peninsula.
On the eve of early elections, Sissi
released a placating, conciliatory message to Hamas' patrons in Qatar (while
Al-Jazeera's Egypt correspondents continue to languish in prison) -- a friendly
trial balloon for his enemies among the Muslim Brotherhood at home (some of whom
have been sentenced to death and will only be saved through his clemency).
It appears that Sissi's political
stance has been coordinated with the U.S. actor sitting "in the back seat" of
this complex "puzzle" aimed at forming a pro-Western, Sunni front with Saudi
Arabia and the other Gulf states on the one hand to counter Iran, and on the
other to neutralize radical Islamists and their extensions, which continue to
threaten both regional and global stability.
The "Sphinx's embrace" that Sissi has
offered Hamas seemingly stems from his desire to override the group's military
capabilities while attempting to include it as a political organization within
the Palestinian Liberation Organization. Perhaps his ultimate goal is to empower
the Palestinian Authority so it has the legitimacy to represent Gaza during
peace negotiations with Israel.
The big question leftover is whether Hamas
and its affiliate organizations will be willing to give up their military
terrorist capabilities in favor of Egypt's patronage and unity with the
Palestinian Authority.
Dr. Reuven Berko
Source: http://www.israelhayom.com/site/newsletter_opinion.php?id=8483
Copyright - Original materials copyright (c) by the authors.
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