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Latest update: 21/08/2011
- diplomacy - Egypt - Israel - Israeli-Palestinian conflict
Israel expresses 'regret' as Egypt recalls ambassador
Israel's Defence Minister Ehud Barak expressed regret over the deaths of five Egyptian security personnel in an Israeli border operation on Saturday as Egypt announced it will recall its ambassador to Israel following the incident.
REUTERS - Egypt welcomed a joint investigation with Israel on the killing of five Egyptian security personnel during an Israeli border operation, but said on Sunday the response was insufficient given the gravity of the situation.
Egypt said on Saturday it would recall its ambassador from Israel, insisting the killing of five Egyptian security personnel while Israeli forces were pursuing gunmen across the border was a breach of its 1979 peace treaty with the Jewish state.
Egypt’s Foreign Ministry later called in the Israeli charge d’affaires, delivered a protest and demanded a joint investigation into the deaths.
Israeli Defence Minister Ehud Barak said Israel regretted the deaths, which followed attacks in its border area that had killed eight people and sparked the most serious crisis in ties with Egypt since longtime ruler Hosni Mubarak’s overthrow in February.
Barak also said he had instructed the Israeli army to conduct a joint investigation with Egypt.
“The Egyptian government considers the approval to conduct a joint investigation to uncover the circumstances of the incident a fundamental step to prevent the occurrence of such accidents as Egyptian blood is not cheap and the government will not accept that Egyptian blood gets shed for nothing,” Egypt’s state news agency MENA said.
The Israeli decision to work with Egypt to investigate the killings is “positive in appearance but does not fit with the weight of the incident and the state of Egyptians’ outrage from the Israeli actions”, MENA added, quoting a cabinet statement released after a second round of a ministerial crisis meeting headed by Prime Minister Essam Sharaf late on Saturday.
“And as Egypt confirms it is keen on the peace with Israel, Tel Aviv also will have to share its responsibilities in protecting that peace,” MENA said.
The statement said the government had asked for a deadline for the joint investigation to conclude its work, adding that crisis meetings would continue until the results are released.
The cabinet, with army generals in attendance, has been holding crisis meetings daily since Friday after thousands of Egyptians protested in front of the Israeli embassy in Cairo overnight, burning Israeli flags, tearing down metal barriers and demanding the expulsion of the Israeli envoy.
Hundreds of Egyptians continue to protest outside the embassy. One protester burned the Israeli flag and replaced it with the Egyptian one, a Reuters witness reported.
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Comments (12)
Muslims Show True Colors To The World
Egyptian blood runs deep with evil and evil is not cheap, G_dliness is as its just a step to eternal peace
This is a good moment for
This is a good moment for Israel to be gone because now it has lost its 30 year support from Egypt and who knows how the new government will act towards Israel. The Egyptian people them selves don't like to have peace relations with Israel.
Israel expresses 'regret' as Egypt recalls ambassador
Egypt should know Israel apology means NOTHING, they'll continue to kill innicent people and they will lie again about it.
IS IT ACCEPTABLE TO KILL JEWS BUT NOT ARABS?
The posts here seem to come from Zionist nuts. ''muslims are all shite anyway!' Lauritz tells us.
''Arabs, and the rest of the world for that matter, realize that it is they who are occupying the erstwhile land of Judea (Israel) and not the other way around' ABDELKADER EL HAMDAOUI says. Boy these guys scroll the internet night and day wondering "what can I do for Israel today" Keep up the brainwashing but people know who the bad people are.
all killing is evil-1
I hope the uprising in Israel will lead to more humane and democratic regime there. It is time Israel pull back and live in peace with the Arabs and the world. US will not be always around to carry stick for Jews and finance Israel aggressions.All the Jews have achieved will be lost if they keep following the Zionists ideology. Shalom
Israel expresses 'regret' as Egypt recalls ambassador
Egypt need to wake up and realize that Israel are not the people of their word. They lie to anyone they make promise to and dont care for any Muslim or their religion. It's time for the Muslim world to come together and become a nation of their own. It's time for the Muslims to take control as one and fight their enemies off their land or make them pay for trust passing. Muslims need to take the land Israeli call Israel back and change the people on that land a very heavy tax to live there and it must be in peace.
IS IT ACCEPTABLE TO KILL JEWS BUT NOT ARABS?
Egypt is responsible for their criminal negligence and should be made accountable. In any event, until and unless the Arabs, and the rest of the world for that matter, realize that it is they who are occupying the erstwhile land of Judea (Israel) and not the other way around as they have been recently indoctrinated (by the British) the conflict will go on. Has anyone bothered to look at the pinprick size of Israel compared to the vast waste land of Arab occupation? All that land which they have been too lazy to cultivate and want more to make barren? It would be like Canada wanting to occupy St Pierre et Miguelon.
Double Standard
Interesting how the rat bastard muslims in Egypt give no concern to the civilians killed in Israel by the militants which is what set everything off in the first place. To hell with Egypt or anyone else whom goes against Israel. Israel must protect herself and has every right and responsibility to do so. If all of the rat bastard muslim nations did not harbor islamo-fascist terrorist and facilitate attacks on Israel; Israelwould not need to fight back to protect herself. The Egyptian position as well as other foes of Israel is indefensible bullshit and cannot be taken seriously. muslims are all shite anyway!
Peace
Ladies and Gentlemen,
with great interest I read your article Above mentioned and would like to write my opinion.
Indeed, the Israeli goverment must give the regret of all Egyptians people given the gravity of the situation and the regret expressing doesn't represent anything.
Therefore, the government must give the tangible regret of victimes families. For the fact falling of the Israeli flag, so I consider it shameful work because , it doesn't express a peace between 2 neightbors or brothers "Egyptians and Israeli peoples"
Why is it Israel's fault?
It's the Egyptian fault, and Egyptian fault only. In what wicked world has the victim is guilty? Israel was invaded by the terrorists coming from the Egyptian border, not the other way around. The terrorists assaulted the Israelis from near an Egyptian army post, the only way an Israeli has killed an Egyptian soldier is if they were co-operating with the terrorists (otherwise, if they were saints as they're trying to present themselves, these guards would probably do something against the injustice).
In my opinion, it is more likely that they were cooperating, because the hatred even in "peaceful" Egypt towards Israelis, Jews, and the West in general is unbelievable.
Why aren't you reporting?
Why are you not reporting about what's going on in Israel RIGHT NOW?! (22:00 Israel time).
One dead and at least ten more wounded after a rocket barrage from Gaza on the Israeli city of Beer Sheeva!!!
At least 30 rockets fired on Israeli civilian targets throughout the day!!!
Why are you not reporting this?!?!
all killing is evil
The days of killing arabs without recourse in over for israel who have never answered to anyone because when a jew dies it seems sadder to them than a non jew.
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