In another article, al-Sha'b sets the logic for the sudden improvement of relations between Cairo and Turabi's Sudan. The paper notes that Egyptian intelligence has recently acquired critical information that sheds new light on key crises that determined Cairo's relations with Khartoum. Cairo now knows of the "involvement of the CIA and the Mossad in planning the assassination attempt on President Mubarak in Addis Ababa" in 1995, not only in order to kill the President, but also "to pin the accusation against Sudan, in an attempt to spark an immediate war between the two countries." Egyptian intelligence is also "examining the link between this attempt [on Mubarak] and the recent massacre in Luxor." Egyptian intelligence has uncovered that the CIA and the Mossad "have succeeded in indirectly recruiting some Arab Afghans and provided the financial and military backing needed for Mubarak's assassination attempt and the Luxor massacre." Significantly, the terrorist commander of both the 1995 attempt on Mubarak's life and the 1997 carnage in Luxor was Turabi's protege Ayman al-Zawahiri -- a point not lost on Mubarak's Cairo.
National newspapers even now are reporting the suspicion that the Luxor massacre might have been caused by the Israeli Mossad to punish Egypt for refusing to attend the Doha regional economic conference with Israel or to join in an armed coalition against Iraq. President Mubarak is also pointing an accusatory finger at Britain for providing refuge for leaders of Egypt's most troublesome Islamic groups, Gama'a Al-Islamiya and Jihad, as well as at Pakistan and Afghanistan. Gama'a Al-Islamiya has claimed responsibility for the slaughter in Luxor
The massacre of 60 tourists at Luxor in 1997, Al Ahram suggested, was the doing of Jews. It asserted last fall that ''the Jews have been behind all wars, and their goal was corruption and destruction.''
rumour that a group of Israeli tourists had changed travel plans to visit the site of the attack at the last moment led quickly to the conclusion that Israel must have planned the attack in advance.
In response to the massacre in Luxor, Egypt's government tightened security at tourist sites and hotels and intensified its hunt for Muslim militants. In mid-December 1997, Egyptian security forces stormed the hide-out of Munir Mustapha Mohammed Abdul-Hafiz, a leader in the militant Islamic Group, which claimed responsibility for the Luxor attack. Abdul-Hafiz was killed, and 10 of his followers arrested, in the raid.
Egypt's relations with Israel worsened noticeably during 1997. The main issue contributing to this decline was lack of progress in the Israeli-Palestinian process. Egypt largely faults Israel's government, led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Egypt also is upset with what it perceives as lack of sufficient U.S. pressure on Israel. In early January 1998, Egyptian Foreign Minister Amr Moussa accused the United States of failing to fulfill its "honest broker" role in the Middle East peace process. Another issue adding to tensions recently has been increased military coordination between Israel and Turkey. On January 4, 1998, the Arab League denounced a planned one-day naval exercise -- scheduled for January 7 -- between the Israeli, Turkish, and U.S. navies. Finally, Egyptian-Israeli relations have been strained over the conviction in Egyptian courts on August 31, 1997, of an Israeli Arab man charged with espionage. The verdict outraged Israel, which totally denied the charges.
Besides
Israel,
Egypt also has had strained relations recently with Qatar. In November 1997,
Egyptian-Qatari ties worsened when Egypt joined several Arab states in
boycotting the Middle East and North Africa (MENA)
economic conference held in Doha, Qatar. In addition,
Qatar's Foreign Minister in December
1997 accused Egypt of complicity in a failed 1996 coup attempt against Qatar's
emir, Sheik Hamad
bin Khalifa
al-Thani.
Finally, Egyptian-Qatari relations have been strained by differences on the
Arab-Israeli peace process, including the possibility of natural gas supplies to
Israel.
Source