Report: Egypt threatens Abbas

Egypt threatened to withdraw its support for the Palestinian Authority if the PA did not act to control the rampant anarchy in the Gaza Strip, according to a report in the London Arab newspaper Al Quds.

The report claimed that following the incident at the Rafah border crossing in which two Egyptian soldiers were killed, Egyptian authorities delivered the threat to PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas as part of a specially delivered message.

Egypt also threatened to withdraw its support for the peace process if the PA did not take the proper steps to restore order to Gaza.

In the incident at the border crossing last Wednesday, two Egyptian border guards were killed and at least 30 were wounded when scores of Fatah gunmen opened fire at Egyptian army posts. They first demolished parts of the concrete slabs along the border between Egypt and the Gaza Strip, enabling many Palestinians to cross into Egypt.

Eyewitnesses said the gunmen used a bulldozer and explosives to create a hole in the wall. Egyptian border guards and Palestinian Authority policemen fired into the air in an unsuccessful attempt to prevent Palestinians from infiltrating into Egypt, they added.

The gunmen were protesting the arrest of one of their colleagues by the PA security forces on charges of kidnapping three British nationals.

Actually, prior to 1948, the Palestinians identified themselves as Syrian, not Jordanian or Egyptian. Haj Amin al-Husseini, who was the Palestinian leader before Arafat (he was also Arafat's uncle) wanted "Palestine" returned to Syria, as the area had been ruled from Damascus for a time before the Turkish conquest.

> Eventually, Gaza will be re-absorbed by Egypt.

Israel would love that to happen. We've tried to give it back to them several times. Prime Minister Begin wanted Sadat to take it along with Sinai. The Egyptians wanted no part of it. The Egyptians aren't stupid.

The gunmen were protesting the arrest of one of their colleagues by the PA security forces on charges of kidnapping three British nationals.

So the bulldozed a fence between them and Syria and shot at Syrian guards? Makes sense to me. Maybe we should try this with Mexico every time we get angry at out own government.

The key is to seal it off from Israel. You don't ask Egypt to take it, you just seal it off. You can already see Egypt eyeing it.

The same thing has to happen in the West Bank. Israel has to choose its line, which it is doing, and seal it. Cut off from Israeli markets and employment, the arab west bank has no choice but to look toward Amman.

Chaos in the territories has been useful to the arabs because Israel was trying to manage it. Once Israel gets out of the business of managing arabs, and very importantly seals the area off from Israel, that same chaos becomes a problem to the other arab states, and not Israel.

Its extremely important, though, that beyond sealing the areas off, any attack across the line be answered by moving the line, that every attack bring a cost to the arabs in territory. Killing the perps is not enough, because there is an inexhaustible supply of perps to take their place; you have to exact a price in territory.

The difference this time, though, is that Israel knows that she can't allow arabs to remain in Israeli territory. Any arabs who wind up on the Israeli side of the line, if the line is moved, must be compensated and expelled to the arab side of the line. There must be no future "occupation" of arabs; any land taken must be cleared and incorporated permanently. Compensate innocent landowners, but push them to the arab side of the line, always.

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