Egypt sealed its borders with Gaza on Sunday but the crisis remains open-ended Two weeks after Palestinians destroyed parts of the border fence with Gaza to reach the Egyptian side and four days since Egypt managed to reseal its borders, there is no sign of a solution to the crisis caused by Israel's continued blockade of Gaza. One indication of the growing tension is the plethora of daily statements made by Egyptian officials directed mainly at Hamas. Following clashes between Egyptian border guards and Palestinians on Monday, Foreign Minister Ahmed Abul- Gheit said that Cairo's "patience" is running out. One Palestinian was killed and 46 Egyptian border guards injured during the clashes. Meanwhile, Egyptian presidential spokesman Suleiman Awad said that, "Egypt is a respectable country. You can't break open its borders and throw stones at its soldiers." In the wake of the clashes a powerful anti-Hamas media campaign has emerged in the press and on TV channels. The popular Al-Qahira Al-Yom daily talk show on Orbit satellite channel on Tuesday upped the ante with its host Amr Adeeb warning Hamas "not to lose Egypt" by continuing "to attack border guards". Talks hosted by Egypt with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Hamas leaders last week failed to reach an agreement on how the Egyptian-Gaza border will be managed. While Abbas continues to insist he will not talk to Hamas unless they "reverse" their Gaza "takeover" last June the Islamic Resistance Movement argues that it must be present at the border, though it is willing to share responsibility with the Palestinian Authority. The border crisis began when armed Palestinians blew up parts of the border fence with Egypt on 23 January after Israel cut off supplies of electricity, fuel and humanitarian assistance to the population of Gaza. The 1979 Camp David treaty between Egypt and Israel limits the number of Egyptian forces in area C, which runs through eastern Sinai and covers approximately a third of the peninsula, to a lightly-armed police presence. As a result Egypt's control of the demilitarised zone will hinge on securing Israel's approval for a heavier security presence than the 750 border guards currently permitted. In the wake of the border breaches the Israeli Foreign Ministry had recommended that Israel allow Egypt to double the number of soldiers. However, the Israeli security cabinet rebuffed the proposal on Wednesday. Egypt, so far, hasn't officially responded to the suggestion. Under a US-brokered agreement in 2005, the Rafah crossing was supervised by the Palestinian Authority and monitored by European Union observers. Following Hamas's takeover of Gaza seven months ago, EU monitors withdrew and the crossing was closed. Neither Hamas, the PA, the European Union, Israel or Egypt are close to solving the dilemma that resulted in the 23 January breach of the border. During a visit to Egypt this week EU Foreign Policy Chief Javier Solana remained vague about the EU's final stand on the issue. Awad on Monday threw the ball in both the EU and Hamas's courts, signalling that although Egypt wants a return to the 2005 agreement it is leaving it to the concerned parties to resolve the crisis. But while Egyptian officials have repeated that they will not tolerate any further breach of the border just how they can prevent a recurrence remains a moot question. What is needed, says Abdel-Moneim Said, director of Al-Ahram Centre for Political and Strategic Studies, is a combination of pressure on Hamas and humanitarian relief for Gazans. When the basics -- medication, medical equipment, fuel and food -- are made available through relief organisations, the situation in Gaza will, he believes, be less explosive. "Egypt can also pressure Hamas to practise more control at the borders," he adds. Most Gazans couldn't care less whether Hamas or Fatah controls the Palestinian side of the Rafah border crossing as long as it is open. Abdul-Razeq Abu Jazar, a journalist living in Rafah, says practical circumstances dictate that PA president and Fatah leader Abbas should retain authority over the crossing, though he recognises that Hamas's electoral victory gives it the right to have a say on all matters of concern to the Palestinian people in Gaza. But more important than which side controls the border, he believes, is the need to avoid any return to the 2005 border agreement which gave the Israelis too much say in running the Rafah crossing. "All the Israeli army has to do is to announce that there's a threat to the lives of the European observers for the observers to abandon their posts at the crossing. They also leave when it gets too crowded inside the crossing," he says. Palestinian political commentator Talal Okal has little hope that the Rafah crossing will re-open anytime soon given the "intractable" crisis between Hamas and Abbas. He has cautioned Palestinians against directing their anger at the economic fallout of Israel's blockade towards Egypt even should the Gaza-Egyptian border remain closed. Egypt can help, but it cannot be expected to go beyond its commitments as a sister nation with a duty to the Palestinian cause, he says. He also warns against promoting Gaza as an independent entity, separate from the West Bank. "Disengagement from the Israeli economy and linkage with the Egyptian economy before reaching a solution to the conflict with Israel will be used by Israel to prolong its occupation. The best proof of this is that Israel welcomes the idea," Okal told Al-Ahram Weekly. Economist Omar Shaaban also believes that linking the Palestinian and Egyptian economies is a bad idea. His reasons, however, are more economic than political. The two economies, he argues, are too similar to stimulate a robust trade relationship. He fears that since Egyptian products are cheaper than Palestinian ones Palestinian consumers will abandon local produce for Egyptian-manufactured goods, leading to a collapse of Gaza's productive base. He urges politicians to keep their focus on ending the occupation rather than stirring up confusion over economic problems resulting from the occupation.
