by Yoni Hersch
In "60 Minutes" interview set to air Sunday, Egypt's President el-Sissi says cooperation between Cairo, Jerusalem closer than ever
Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi
Photo: CBS News / 60 Minutes
CBS News has
rejected a request from the Egyptian government to pull an interview
with the country's President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi.
Although the network declined to say what
exactly drew opposition from Cairo, the government is believed to be
concerned by el-Sissi's comments on Israel.
Asked in the interview with the "60
Minutes" program whether cooperation between Egypt and Israel was the
closest it had ever been, el-Sissi responded, "That is correct. … We
have a wide range of cooperation with the Israelis."
Egypt has been fighting an insurgency in
the Sinai Peninsula for several years, battling an estimated 1,000
Islamic State-affiliated terrorists that Cairo has allowed the Israelis
to attack by air.
In February, Egypt launched "Comprehensive Operation Sinai 2018" in an effort to rid the peninsula of terrorists.
In recent years Israel has allowed the
Egyptian military to boost its presence in the peninsula several times
as part of the country's war on terror.
Other than on security issues, Israel and Egypt maintain close diplomatic ties, as Egypt is the chief mediator between Israel and Hamas, the terrorist group that controls the Gaza Strip.
The interview, which was recorded when
el-Sissi was in New York to attend a meeting of the U.N. General
Assembly in late September, was set to air Sunday evening.
El-Sissi was also asked about reports from
various human rights organizations that the Egyptian regime was holding
some 60,000 political prisoners.
"I don't know where they got that figure. I
said there are no political prisoners in Egypt. Whenever there is a
minority trying to impose their extremist ideology we have to intervene
regardless of their numbers."
Yoni Hersch
Source: http://www.israelhayom.com/2019/01/06/cbs-rejects-request-to-pull-pro-israel-interview-with-egyptian-leader/
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