Israel's cross-border attack, in which it killed five Egyptian soldiers, has diverted the attention of Islamist groups away from their opposition to the setting of inviolable principles to which any new constitution must adhere, writes Amani Maged Islamist responses to the attack have so far been confined to issuing furious statements and demands ranging from an official Israeli apology to Egypt rescinding the Camp David accords. A number of Islamist presidential candidates have pressed the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF) to take action. Magdi Hussein, coordinator of the Egyptian campaign to lift the blockade on Gaza, urged the immediate closure of the Israeli embassy in Cairo. Another presidential hopeful, Mohamed Selim El-Awwa, called for unity on the domestic front and solidarity behind the Egyptian army. "Nothing is more precious than Egyptian soil. An attack against Egypt is an attack against Islam," proclaimed El-Awwa. He added that the only way forward, at this point, is to hold elections as soon as possible. "The temporary rule of the Armed Forces and the Essam Sharaf government must end so that we can lay the foundations for the future of Egypt." Muslim Brotherhood Deputy Supreme Guide Mahmoud Ezzat called for a change of policy. Egypt should no longer remain silent in the face of any aggression, he said. It is not enough to expel the Zionist ambassador from Cairo and withdraw the Egyptian ambassador from Tel Aviv, Egypt must also reconsider the Camp David accord with an eye to asserting its full authority over the Sinai. He also urged that development projects in the peninsula be stepped up, saying that millions of Egyptians must be moved to Sinai to safeguard national security and better capitalise on its natural resources. He recommended greater vigilance against the "constant espionage operations" and "the harshest punishments against the flock spies that are falling day after day". Most Islamist political forces positioned themselves squarely behind the army. "We stand behind the Egyptian army. Israel must not think that the army's involvement in the management of domestic affairs will divert it from its sacred duty of protecting the nation and the people," Nageh Ibrahim, a senior member of Al-Gamaa Al-Islamiya. "All the Egyptian people support the Armed Forces and can, themselves, become an army to defend the nation's land and sovereignty." Islamist movements were well represented at the demonstrations in front of the Israeli embassy. Members from such groups as Labbaika Ya Aqsa (In the service of Al-Aqsa), "I'm an Egyptian with the Intifada", the Alexandria- based Waad Allah (Pledge of God), the Permanent Committee for the Liberation of Palestine and Arabs against Zionism joined in chants calling for the expulsion of the Israeli ambassador and the punishment of those responsible for the deaths of the Egyptian soldiers. Although the removal of the Israeli flag from the top of the Israeli embassy building in Cairo served to relieve some anger, not everyone felt the act was appropriate. According to presidential candidate Hisham El-Bastawisi, it constituted an offence against international law and Islamic Sharia. "Embassies must remain safe and secure. International law and Islamic law both provide for the protection of foreign embassies and ambassadors even in the event of war. It is the duty of the people to protect an embassy and an ambassador," he said. El-Bastawisi did, however, support calls for the expulsion of the Israeli ambassador and was critical of the response of the Egyptian authorities. "It is confused. One moment they issue a statement, the next moment they withdraw it." He also held that an official Israeli apology was not enough, demanding that Israel hand over those who fired at the Egyptian soldiers and that all normalisation agreements be frozen until it complies. "Only then should we talk about an apology and whether or not to accept it," he said, adding that it was also necessary to renegotiate the articles of the Camp David accord. He stressed that Egypt was capable of managing the situation in a way that would enable it to avoid being lured into a battle whose timing was not of its own choosing. He also urged national forces to form a united front and agree on a timetable for the peaceful transfer of authority to a civilian government. Israeli President Shimon Peres's apology for the deaths of the Egyptian soldiers was rejected by many political party leaders who continued to press for the expulsion of the Israeli ambassador. In the opinion of the Secretary- General of the Labour Party Magdi Qarqar, Peres's apology was not commensurate with the crime. He also believes that popular pressure in the form of demonstrations in front of the Israeli embassy have strengthened Egypt's position with respect to Israel. As a result of such public pressure, he argues, the SCAF and the government are being compelled to revise their thinking and contemplate options they had not previously considered. He also thought the removal of the Israeli flag had a great symbolic impact. "The Zionist entity will have to think a thousand times before ever venturing such an attack again. Henceforward, it will have to reckon very carefully with the Egyptian people," he said. Tareq El-Malt, official spokesman for the Islamist Wasat (Centre) Party, rejected the Israeli apology as insufficient. "Over the past 20 years they have claimed more than 30 lives and every time they apologise. Israel has to learn that Egypt is not the same as it was before the revolution when it had a servile regime." El-Malt dismissed the exhortations to calm on the part of some military experts. In shifting their focus away from the debate over "supra-constitutional principles" to the bloodshed Israeli forces caused on this side of the Egyptian border, Islamist and liberal forces alike are scrambling to register their positions with the public, competing to express the most outrage. Clearly, none of these forces has lost sight of the forthcoming parliamentary elections or the question of inviolable principles, it is just that the issue has been relegated to a back burner for the time being.
