Israel to U.S.: Pointless to bolster Egypt patrols on Gaza border - Haaretz

Subscribe to Print Edition

Thu., November 15, 2007 Kislev 5, 5768

Israel Time: 15:20 (EST+7)

web haaretz.com

Back to Homepage

Print Edition

Diplomacy

Defense

Arts & Leisure

Real Estate

Jewish World

National

Advertising

Easy Start

Magazine

Business

Opinion

Rosner's Domain

Anglo File

Week's End

Books



		The Rafah border crossing, on the Egypt-Gaza border. (AP)

del.icio.us

Digg It! new

Last update - 10:12 11/11/2007

Israel to U.S.: Pointless to bolster Egypt patrols on Gaza border

By Barak Ravid and Amos Harel, Haaretz Correspondents

tags: Israel, Gaza Strip, Egypt

Israel has turned down an American proposal to increase the number of Egyptian soldiers deployed along the Philadelphi Route to stem the flow of smuggled weapons from Sinai to the Gaza Strip.

Foreign Ministry Director General Aharon Abramovitch and the head of the political-military bureau at the Defense Ministry, Amos Gilad, told senior American officials that until Egypt meets its agreements on countering smuggling along the Gaza border, "there is no room to discuss increasing the number of soldiers."

Meanwhile, Egyptian and Israeli officers will begin talks in Rome Sunday that will concentrate on the security situation along the border.

	Advertisement

Last week, Mark Kimmitt, Assistant Secretary of State for Political-Military Affairs, and Robert Danin, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs, visited Israel as part of a U.S. team set up to assist with a solution for the smuggling issue.

Danin and Kimmitt met with Abramovitch and Gilad, raising the idea of making changes to the security annex of the peace agreement between Israel and Egypt, allowing the increase in the number of troops Egypt is permitted to deploy along the Gaza border.

The two Israeli officials strongly rejected this possibility and charged that "Egypt's problem is not the number of soldiers but the lack of motivation."

Some 750 Egyptian border guards are currently deployed along the border area with the Gaza Strip, in accordance with agreements signed between Israel and Egypt following the unilateral evacuation of the Strip by Israel in August 2005.

Egypt is demanding to be allowed to deploy more soldiers along the border to be able to better counter smuggling.

In a detailed document Egyptian sources supplied Haaretz, Cairo claims that since the start of the year, its security forces uncovered about 150 tunnels and confiscated 83 tons of explosives.

To seal the border area, the Egyptians say they need to double the number of soldiers deployed there.

"The situation requires a more realistic consideration to the Egyptian efforts, and agreement for the Egyptian request to increase the number of the Egyptian border guards."

In the document, Egypt warns that Israeli accusations that the smugglers are being aided by elements in the Egyptian security establishment undermines the motivation of their security forces to fight against the smuggling.

Senior Israeli sources rejected Egyptian claims and said that statistics Cairo is presenting are "inflated and baseless."

So far, Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has avoided addressing the issue of smuggling from Egypt in public, but in discussions behind close doors he has been highly critical of the way Egypt is handling the problem.

During a meeting with visiting German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier about 10 days ago, he said he cannot understand why Egypt is not more serious about countering the smuggling.

"They are allowing the situation to continue unhindered and are permitting weapons and terrorists to be brought into the Gaza Strip," Olmert told Steinmeier, who came to Israel after a visit in Cairo.

"What they are doing is not helping Abu Mazen [PA Chairman Mamoud Abbas] and only boosting Hamas," Olmert added.

The German minister told Olmert about his talks with Egyptian intelligence chief Omar Suleiman, who said that Egyptian forces had uncovered 67 tunnels.

"The problem is that for every 67 tunnels they uncover, there are 67 more they have not found and others that are being dug," Olmert said in response.

The three days of meetings between Israeli and Egyptian officers will begin today in Rome. The talks are part of an annual dialogue that takes place at the headquarters of the Multinational Force Observers, the international force that oversees the implementation of the security aspects of the peace agreement. The force has been stationed in Sinai since 1982.

The issue of smuggling is expected to be the main subject of the talks, and the Israeli delegation will present data regarding the estimated number of tunnels straddling the Philadelphi Route, and also recommend ways that Egypt can improve its counter-smuggling efforts.

Related articles:

Egypt: IDF soldiers are aiding arms smuggling to Gaza Strip

Egypt denies indifference toward arms smuggling into Gaza Strip

Israel: Gaza arms smuggling could nix Annapolis meet

Bookmark to del.icio.us


	New Kids in the Strip
	Hamas' new police band lifts spirits by crooning about Islamic holy war.


	Less than equal
	A poll shows 70% of youth don't think Bedouin deserve the same rights as Jews




1.	But, the IDF is smuggling weapons into Gaza!!!!!!!	03:03	\|	POP	11/11/07

2.	egypt will look like swiss cheese soon	03:26	\|	VIPER	11/11/07

3.	damned if you do and damned if you don`t	03:28	\|	VIPER	11/11/07

4.	Never ending Egyptian lies	03:31	\|	Genuine Tosefta	11/11/07

5.	Israel options	03:43	\|	Genuine Tosefta	11/11/07

6.	Egypt options	03:46	\|	Genuine Tosefta	11/11/07

7.	#2 VIPER - It`s not a matter of the Egyptians	05:33	\|	* BEN JABO	11/11/07

8.	#3, VIPER...	06:20	\|	Silvienne	11/11/07

9.	Caravan smuggling first	06:23	\|	Omran	11/11/07

10.	no more egyptian guards	06:44	\|	r.m.	11/11/07

11.	#3 - What "huge length of border"?	06:47	\|	JES	11/11/07

12.	This is 100 guards per mile!	06:58	\|	B	11/11/07

13.	Why shouldn`t Hamas bring in weapons to	07:22	\|	Austrian	11/11/07

14.	Aha, so it`s not Egyptian ineptness...	08:23	\|	Esther	11/11/07

15.	Taking your choice with the Egyptians	08:34	\|	Mike	11/11/07

16.	something`s amiss...and i believe the egyptians!	08:38	\|	eric	11/11/07

17.	JES #10: that`s 10,000,000 millimeters.	09:01	\|	S	11/11/07

18.	JES and huge length of border	09:10	\|	Margie in Tel Aviv	11/11/07

19.	how will egypt	09:19	\|	pal in germany	11/11/07

20.	Black Market	09:25	\|	Paulo	11/11/07

21.	#15	09:39	\|	Gili	11/11/07

22.	Paulo Foolo	09:43	\|	Nik "Banned" Miller	11/11/07

23.	Paulo - Why should we even read your posts if you refuse	09:51	\|	Eliyahu	11/11/07

24.	Austrian #13	09:53	\|	alois	11/11/07

25.	Austrian bad information	10:42	\|	Margie in Tel Aviv	11/11/07

26.	Paolo	10:47	\|	Margie in Tel Aviv	11/11/07

27.	#19 pal in germany	10:47	\|	* BEN JABO	11/11/07

28.	#19 Paulo Lisboa	10:49	\|	* BEN JABO	11/11/07

29.	Digging tunnels	11:01	\|	Palestinian Brit	11/11/07

30.	TAKE BACK SINAI,ADMIT OLD MSTAKES,DON`T EVER REPEAT SAME MISTAKES	15:37	\|	VOICE of MOSHIACH)))	11/11/07

31.	#11, JESS, huge for only 750 soldiers	00:28	\|	VIPER	12/11/07

32.	#7, BEN-JABO, finally a logical and almost fair post	00:35	\|	VIPER	12/11/07

33.	A winner of an argument, isn`t it.....	01:13	\|	Johnboy	12/11/07

34.	A winner of an argument, isn`t it.....	01:13	\|	Johnboy	12/11/07

35.	#13, Austrian...you have a good point...	04:46	\|	Silvienne	12/11/07

36.	#22, Nik Miller...	04:48	\|	Silvienne	12/11/07

37.	#31 - You`re joking right?	06:27	\|	JES	12/11/07

38.	#37, JESS, omg, do you expect them to stand shoulder to shoulder	12:52	\|	VIPER	12/11/07

39.	#38 - Really Viper	14:18	\|	JES	12/11/07

40.	#32 Viper/Apartheid	18:23	\|	* BEN JABO	12/11/07

41.	#38, Viper`s right....	06:06	\|	Silvienne	13/11/07

42.	#40, Ben Jabo to Viper...	06:09	\|	Silvienne	13/11/07

43.	#40, BEN-JABO, LAST TIME	07:25	\|	VIPER	13/11/07

44.	#41 Silvienne	18:34	\|	* BEN JABO	13/11/07

45.	#42 SILVIENNE	18:38	\|	* BEN JABO	13/11/07

46.	#43 VIPER - You poor soul	18:40	\|	* BEN JABO	13/11/07

47.	#45, Ben Jabo...	05:44	\|	Silvienne	14/11/07

48.	#47 Silvienne - If you were to take a count	15:23	\|	* BEN JABO	14/11/07

49.	#48, Ben Jabo...	17:37	\|	Silvienne	14/11/07

50.	#49 Silvienne - Both sides are doing it	01:27	\|	* BEN JABO	15/11/07

51.	#50, Ben Jabo...	04:53	\|	Silvienne	15/11/07

Today Online


	Tom Segev: Germany should pay as long as even one Holocaust survivor still lives
	Responses: 37


	Minister Lieberman: PA must recognize Israel as Jewish state
	Responses: 100


	Aluf Benn: U.S. wants Israel to get used to the Iranian bomb
	Responses: 48


	Haaretz.com TV: Hebron settlers taped abusing Palestinians
	Responses: 33


	Watchdog group: Only 2 W. Bank roadblocks removed recently
	Responses: 32

Rosner's Domain

Rosner's Guest: Vanessa Ochs on keeping Judaism real and relevant

GA 2007: Oy vey, no catastrophe to talk about

Reasons to like John McCain (WTR)

Ahead of summit, N.Y. Congressman fears for Mideast stability

More Headlines
14:54 Weisglass to Winograd: Sharon wouldn't have sent ground troops to Lebanon


14:20 Israeli stabbed in Sharon; police suspect nationalistic motive


15:09 Officials: Two militants killed, 5 hurt, in IDF strike on Gaza Strip


13:52 Abbas calls for overthrow of Hamas regime in Gaza Strip


13:07 Syria said prepared to attend regional peace summit in Annapolis


15:12 Police checking possibility PM violated campaign finance laws


15:08 Ukraine president: Anti-Semitic acts in my country are marginal


11:03 Report: Series of explosions rip through Iranian military site


11:51 VIEWPOINT / Germany should pay as long as even one survivor lives


15:06 Peres: Courts are too forgiving with regard to law breakers


12:41 Court sentences teenage murderer of Ma'ayan Ben-Horin to life term


11:06 MK Tibi calls for Arab representative on health basket panel


12:53 Comptroller to tour planned site of controversial IDF base