CAIRO: Palestinians continued to stream over the Egypt-Gaza border in Rafah yesterday, purchasing essential supplies they have been unable to get under Israel's blockade of the Gaza strip. That they have been permitted to do so by Egyptian border patrol has led to questions about Egypt's intentions for the Gaza Strip, its relationship with Hamas and its role in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Speaking to reporters Wednesday following the explosions that shattered part of the border wall, President Hosni Mubarak said that he ordered Egyptian security to, "Let them come in to eat and buy food. Then they can go back, as long as they are not carrying weapons. The Egyptian government is currently in a precarious position, facing growing outrage within Egypt over the situation in Gaza on the one hand, and criticism from Israel and the US on the other. Further to that the US and Israel recently accused Egypt of allowing Palestinians to smuggle arms and money through tunnels beneath the Egypt-Gaza border, leading to a cooling in relations. Amid the current situation it has been mooted that Israel would try to hand over control of the Gaza Strip to Egypt entirely. "This is a wrong assumption, said Hossam Zaki, the official spokesman for Egypt s foreign ministry. "The current situation is only an exception and for temporary reasons. The border will go back to normal. Spokeswoman for the Israeli embassy in Cairo, Shani Cooper-Zubeida, told Daily News Egypt that it was Egypt's responsibility to patrol the border, and so it was responsible for restoring order. "Israel expects them to solve this problem, she said. At the same time, Hamas has publicly called upon Egypt to support efforts to unite it with opposition faction Fatah, a move that would signal its recognition of Hamas' legitimacy in Gaza, and outrage the US and Israel. Diaa Rashwan, an analyst at Al-Ahram Center for Political and Strategic Studies told Daily News Egypt that the conflicting expectations put the Egyptian government in a political bind, but that it will prioritize appeasing the Egyptian public before the US and Israel. "The government is afraid right now, they are facing a lot of internal unrest and mass demonstrations. They will try and give the impression that they did what they had to do. An estimated 500 protestors, mostly members of the Muslim Brotherhood, were arrested in downtown Cairo yesterday where thousands marched against the blockade, reflecting the Egyptian public's solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza. "It's a humanitarian disaster, Mohamed Metwaly, who works at Egyptian Teletext, told Daily News Egypt. "[The Israelis] can't punish an entire population just to stop the rockets being fired from Gaza. Israeli Deputy Defense Minister Matan Vilnai caused a stir when he said Israel gradually wants to relinquish responsibility for Gaza, but Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak, speaking to The Associated Press on the sidelines of the Davos Economic Forum in Switzerland, said I don t go too far in my interpretation of this. Egypt rejected the Israeli ideas, and said it would not change border arrangements. A pharmacist on the Egyptian side of Rafah told reporters that he refused to profit from the influx of Palestinians looking for medicine by marking up his prices, as many other shopkeepers were reported to have done. "It is not just the duty of the Egyptian government to help the Gazans, he said. "It is our duty as human beings. Gaza was annexed by Egypt following the 1948 war and remained under its control until 1967 when it came under Israeli occupation. Many families have members on either side of the border. Speaking to Daily News Egypt from Rafah, Waleed Al-Modallal, dean of the Islamic University in Rafah, said that the Egyptians had openly welcomed the incoming Gazans. "The Egyptian public is very supportive of our cause, he said. "We are one people, one hope, one spirit. As the crisis in Gaza continues, however, hopes for a lasting peace agreement between Hamas, Fatah and Israel, look ever more remote. The gulf between Fatah and Hamas is deepening by the day, Mohamed Lafi, a lecturer in translation at Al-Aqsa University in Rafah, told Daily News Egypt. Lafi also worries about what will happen once the border between Egypt and Gaza is resealed. "There was a sense of elation over the last two days as people bought as much petrol, oil, cement and other goods as they could from Egypt, he said. "But it was just a temporary lifting of the siege. The situation is very unsafe. Egypt has assured the United States it soon will reseal its border with the Gaza Strip.
