August 24, 2011, - 2:14 pm

Shocker: After Dumbassed Israeli Apology to Egypt, Turns Out Eilat Terrorists Are Egyptian

By Debbie Schlussel

The death toll from last week’s Islamic terrorist attacks near Eilat, Israel is now  up to 9, with many dozens more seriously injured.  Yet, Israel–yes, Binyamin Netanyahu’s Israel–apologized to Egypt for defending itself.  Now, it turns out that three of the Islamic terrorists who perpetrated the attack are not Palestinians but Egyptians. And they were aided not only by Bedouin Arabs in the Sinai, but also by Egyptian Army soldiers who noticed them and did nothing.  Oh, and it turns out that Israel didn’t “deliberately” attack any Egyptians when it responded to the attack. Yup, the apology was not only boneheaded, but it was premature articulation. And, per usual, it is a sign of weakness to Muslims who laugh and laugh and laugh at it.

The IDF did everything in its power to prevent Egyptian troops from getting hurt in last Thursday’s multiple terror attacks near Eilat, inquiries conducted by both the IDF and the Egyptian army showed. The IDF also found that at least three of the terrorists were Egyptian citizens.

Head of the General Staff’s Planning Branch Amir Eshel, who traveled to Cairo early this week to present to Egyptian officials the findings of the IDF’s initial investigation, even brought photographic evidence to the fact.

Why do that? Who gives a crap what these jihadi Jew-haters think?

The evidence shows that contrary to Egyptian media reports, the IDF’s attack helicopters avoided hitting Egyptian military vehicles and troops stationed at the border. . . .

In addition, an examination of the bodies of the terrorists killed by the IDF clearly showed that at least three of them were Egyptian citizens. One was a member of a radical Egyptian group who was tried in the country.

He escaped from prison during the first days of the Egyptian revolution, when several Cairo prisons were broken into as hundreds of imprisoned Jihadist terrorists escaped to Sinai. . . .

The Egyptian terrorists joined Palestinian operatives from the Popular Resistance Committees and together they perpetrated the coordinated attacks. Israel also has further proof that joint Palestinian-Egyptian terror cells were in Sinai for weeks and were assisted by Bedouins in the region.

Also according to the IDF investigation, the Egyptian troops noticed the presence of the terrorists even before the attack was launched, but did nothing about it. Only later that evening did an officer and a few soldiers leave their post, evidently to stop the ongoing sniper fire. The terrorists, who were wearing uniforms similar to those of the Egyptian army, resisted.

Hmmm . . . assisted by Egyptian soldiers who looked the other way and wearing Egyptian Army uniforms. And Egypt wonders why some Egyptian soldiers got killed when Israel responded.

Still stand behind that apology, Netanyahu? Hey, where is Egypt’s apology to Israel?

Don’t hold your breath.






23 Responses

Debbie;
Normally I would agree with you. In fact yours was my first reaction as well. But there is more to this story than this particular terrorist attack and that is the overall Israeli- Egyptian relationship, security, economic and otherwise, that is involved. You can argue that the apology was a pandering to a regime that will, in the end, turn into another Jew hating harbor of terror. There is also the possibility, however, that it will give the Egyptian Military fodder for local consumption while, at the same time, continue an important security relationship in the area, however tenuous and fragile it may be. But I am not that sure that this attempt by Bibi is completely without logic.

William Moskowitz on August 24, 2011 at 2:40 pm

    William Moskowitz, you say:

    There is also the possibility, however, that it will give the Egyptian Military fodder for local consumption while, at the same time, continue an important security relationship in the area, however tenuous and fragile it may be. But I am not that sure that this attempt by Bibi is completely without logic.

    Of course there’s a logic, but not the logic you suspect. Bibi and company know perfectly well that Egypt has been engaged in a cold war with Israel since the so-called peace treaty. That is why Egypt’s armed forces are configured for attacking an enemy like Israel. Indeed, why else would Egypt be building its military so substantially? My point is that there is no “security relationship” in the first place. Therefore, Mubarek’s fall was not problematic for Israel. (However, the US’s refusal to defend him when he was supposed to be a US ally is a big problem for the US.)

    The major political players of Israel know that peace processing is mere theater. It serves domestic purposes having nothing to do with peace and everything to do with the ongoing conflict between Jews (Israeli citizens who are Jews first) and Israelis (citizens who, though halachally Jewish, are Israelis first).

    skzion on August 24, 2011 at 8:20 pm

I wanted somehow to give informed the Egyptians,somewhere in Israel could be 1 racket,scheduled to Aswan!And!!! Pleas millions quickly have to learn to swim!!!!!

DEZIDERIO on August 24, 2011 at 2:50 pm

Hi Debbie.

This wouldn’t be the first time Israel has apologized for an IDF action only to find out later that there was nothing to apologize for.

BTW, it makes sense for Israel to use this incident to leverage a meeting between its military leaders and Egypt’s. They need to hash this out between military professionals in private so everybody knows what to expect in the future.

There is NO Santa Claus on August 24, 2011 at 3:10 pm

    FresnoZionism lays out a few good rules about when NOT to apologize:

    Israel must never apologize for self-defense. Jews have the right of self-defense.

    Israel must never apologize for the Jewish state. Jews have the right of self-determination and Israel is entirely legitimate in international law.

    Israel must never apologize for defending the right of Jews to live anywhere between the Jordan and the Mediterranean, which right is also guaranteed in international law.

    Israel must never apologize for Israeli culture, although it’s neither entirely Middle Eastern or European (or American).

    Jews have 3,000 years of living with a slave mentality and more than half of that as an insecure and often persecuted minority in various countries around the world. Pride, dignity and self-respect doesn’t come naturally to Jews and Israelis. What they say can and will be used against them.

    Israel is the one decent country in the Middle East. Its neighbors hate Jews and have no respect for human life. The Middle East has its own ruthless and barbaric set of rules and no amount of Jewish niceness or Israeli restraint will change that reality.

    NormanF on August 24, 2011 at 5:14 pm

“Premature articulation” — that’s a good one. Unfortunately, Netanyahu’s “conservative” coalition government specializes in it.

Seek on August 24, 2011 at 3:21 pm

    There is a case to be made for apologizing to decent people when one is mistaken.

    Given that Egypt violated its peace treaty with Israel by launching an attack on sovereign Israel territory, that does not make it the injured party. Just the exact opposite.

    Israel would do well to remember its living in a neighborhood full of savages and cannibals on whom Israeli civilized behavior is completely wasted.

    NormanF on August 24, 2011 at 5:31 pm

Israel needs to quit apologizing for defending itself. The IDF needs to have a few more “collateral damage” incidents followed up by a “S**t happens/Fog of War” type of apology.

Maybe if Israel went back to its post-Six Day War boundaries, they wouldn’t have all the problems with the Egyptians. It’s just a little difficult to dig tunnels under the Suez, and it would put a little more distance between the terrorists and Eilat.

I like TINSC’s idea of the IDF Generals and Ehud Barak getting together with the Egyptian military for a little “sit-down”. There’s nothing like a little face-to-face to get things hashed out.

Smokey Behr on August 24, 2011 at 3:46 pm

Debbie, blame that on the defenseless Defense Minister Ehud Barak who rushed to apologize to Egypt without waiting for all the facts to be discovered first and Space Cadet Shimon Peres, who thinks Israel can never apologize enough. Israel now looks stupid for confessing guilt before the entire picture became clear. As an attorney, you counsel your client there is a reason not to admit to anything that might lead to him being convicted in court. There are always two sides of the story. And now with that dumbassed apology, no one will bother to hear Israel’s side of it!

NF: As I already wrote in comments on a previous post, this is the Netanyahu govt and he works at his behest. He did not issue this apology on his own. This was Netanyahu’s apology. Period. Stop making excuses for Netanyahu. DS

NormanF on August 24, 2011 at 4:21 pm

    They had seriously considered apologizing to Turkey and Barak was one of the strongest proponents of it, together with Meridor. Lieberman and Yaalon were strongly opposed. Prime Minister Netanyahu made the right decision then. I’m not making excuses for him in this case and in my view a no apology stand should be one Israel should adopt as a matter of national principle.

    NormanF on August 24, 2011 at 5:20 pm

Given the number of Ministers in Netanyahu’s coalition government perhaps, as one wag suggested, Bibi should create a Ministry of Apologies. Barak can head it after he’s dismissed as Defense Minister. (I’d like Yaalon to take his place.) Better yet, just drop the “apologize first, investigate later” policy. And fire Barak.

What was most egregious in this dust-up was Egypt’s umbrage over an Israeli statement that Egypt was losing control over the increasingly lawless Sinai. That statement is true, of course, but for Israel – an “infidel” state – to say such a thing doesn’t fly in an Islamic culture like Egypt. But *they* feel free to insult and libel Israel. After all, it’s taught that the “unbeliever” should be made to submit and feel himself “humiliated”. Israel still doesn’t understand what it’s dealing with.

Raymond in DC on August 24, 2011 at 5:19 pm

    I agree with you. Netanyahu made the right call on Turkey and here he takes a different tack. And with the exigencies of Israel’s coalition governments and ministers from different parties speaking at cross purposes, its not always certain who represents Israeli policy. And the Prime Minister has no real control over ministries headed by people from parties other than his own. That’s a fact of political life in Israel that won’t change in the foreseeable future.

    NormanF on August 24, 2011 at 5:23 pm

The apology was not needed, but it doesn’t change how Muslims view Israel. They hated them before, and they hate them after. No change.

What this is leading to is if Egypt can control that border, then Israel will need to re-occupy the Sinai to get a buffer zone like the Golan and the West Bank.

fred on August 24, 2011 at 6:16 pm

Sorry for the typo. ..if Egypt CAN’T control that border, then Israel will need to re-occupy the Sinai to get a buffer zone.

fred on August 24, 2011 at 6:18 pm

WM, look at the entire context; Egypt unifying the terrorist “Palestinian” factions attacking Israel, its overtures towards Iran, the bombing of the gas lines, growing dominance of the Muslim Brotherhood, etc., etc. Liberals always say that within some despicable group, we have to reach out to the “moderates”, i.e. in this case the Egyptian military. In effect, this is a rationalization for displacing Mubarek. We don’t need a sanitization of the Egyptian military, as it rationalizes taking an unclear and appeasement-type view of what is happening in the Mideast.

Little Al on August 24, 2011 at 8:08 pm

Hey, where is Egypt’s apology to Israel?
Apparantly they decided to take down burn the Israeli flag instead:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bq8kcKz5eZ8

That one man would single handedly climb a ten story building to take down a flag tells you two things:
1: He has some massive balls
2: The Egyptians have an intense hatred for Israel
Muslim Brotherhood or no Muslim Brotherhood, they’d still hate Israel. You can thank Obama for not supporting Mubarak, who kept these sentiments at bay.

Drabo on August 25, 2011 at 6:15 am

I agree w/ those above who say that Israel should re-occupy the Sinai. I do disagree w/ Skzion – Mubarak’s ouster was only against US interests b’cos it ended the limited amount of security Israel had from its Egypt border. Otherwise, Egypt is not an oil superpower like Sowdi Barbaria or Libya, and since the Cold war is over, the US has no interests in keeping the Suez Canal open (although Europe does).

On the apologies, I agree w/ Raymond on creating a ministry of apologies, although if Barak opposed the apology to Turkey, he shouldn’t be fired even if he supported this one. Instead, strengthen the government by giving the Apologies ministry to Shas – and give that party the job of negotiating those apologies w/ anybody who demands it. If Shas can dilute apologies in the way they blackmail their coalition partners, it’d be absolutely worth it!

Infidel Pride on August 25, 2011 at 8:01 am

On another note, Israel should advise all its citizens – the ones who’re still stupid enough to be in Egypt – to leave Egypt, and then recall its envoy, and close down its embassy. And get ready for the next 6-day war, and this time, annex Sinai, Damascus, Judea, Samaria and South Lebanon, and expel Muslims from all these areas.

Infidel Pride on August 25, 2011 at 8:03 am

Listen to me Debbie, I am a Copt from Egypt and I know Moslems more than you would think. For Moslems religion supercedes nationality. Actually Islam is their nationality. Islam is a religion and a state. Trying to trust a Moslem is like hauling water in a sieve. How much water will the sieve hold????? tell me.

Sadat the great hypocrite of the Middle East needing the US aid faked peace with Israel. He was not sincere about it at all. But he served his purpose. Then he turned around and handed Egypt to the Moslem brotherhood at every level in the government; from the street sweeper to the officers of the armed forces. What do you think, they will be loyal to the peace treaty????? He was angry with the Saudis because they told Egypt to go buy the arms and they will pay the sellers. You know whay??? to take 25 % commission to the price for themselves. So to spite the Saudis he made peace with Israel not for the sake of peace. This is the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth dear.

G. R. SCHAROUBIM on August 25, 2011 at 1:19 pm

Infidel Pride,

guess what, Israel is now drilling for oil in its sea region and it is said that the find is a sizable one. It compares with the Saudi reserves and it is a light crude of higher quality than the Saudi high sulpher crude. Americans are naive about international politics but as usual they think they are a master player in the field. When they appoint a Saudi mole as their advisor in their relations with the Arabs, Is that smart Infidel Pride??????

G. R. SCHAROUBIM on August 25, 2011 at 1:27 pm

We should blame our governments past and present over this one. The failure is also on our IDF leaders who since the 1980s when the Siani was returned have not made this security matter a high priority.

We’ve long neglected that long stretch of border from Gaza to Eilat & if all those refugees could slip in, what really was stopping terrorists?

We have no business putting our trust in any Arab to defend our borders. It all falls on our shoulders as it should be.

It’s a shame our leaders act as reactionaries instead of visionaries & our blood is cheapened as a result. The problem stems from the constant political gamesmanship of putting everything off.

Bibi should do the right things and send in the building crews and make us a real southern flank border now and tell all those stupid social protesters (a.k.a free concert goers) he’s got more pressing concerns.

We Negev dwellers suffer enough with Hamas. Sirens warn us of incoming bombs, but no one warns us of terrorists slipping across our borders.

We deserve better.

Fred on August 27, 2011 at 11:58 pm

Debbie
I am a copt( christian) from Egypt. I agree with all what you said, but thoses who did all these shamful acts of killing, burning the Israeli flaf and many other acts, are not Egyptians. Those are the descendants of the backward Arabs who invaded Egypt in the past and turned it from the pharaonic coptic civilization to the stupid hatred of Islam. Please do not call these terrorists Egyptians cause this hurts the feelings of all the copts in Egypt. For thoses who do not know the real Coptic Egyptians are many in Egypt. We are 20 million people in the country and all of us love Israel and the ubited states and even we are tolerant with thoses terrosrists who kill and rabe our children daily in Egypt. Shame on you Debbie, because you always defend Israel against the Islamic terrorism and you never mentioned the Coptic sufferings under the terrorist rule of Islam.
God bless.
Atta

Atta from Egypt on September 23, 2011 at 10:16 am

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