Where does Egypt stand on Israel's war on Gaza?

As Israel's war on Gaza has entered its second week, Egypt seems to have been seeking to boost its credentials as a key mediator between the two warring parties, Hamas and the far-right Israeli government, at a time when President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi arguably lost a great deal popularity ahead of an upcoming presidential election.

The ongoing conflict seems to be an opportunity for the Egyptian regime to reinforce its status and for Sisi to become 'a national hero' by publically rejecting recurrent Western powers' demands to force the Palestinians of the Gaza Strip to resettle in North Sinai.

In recent public statements, Sisi warned that the current escalation between Israel and Hamas could have implications that may affect the security and stability of the region. "Safeguarding national security is my top responsibility, and there will be no compromise or complacency under any circumstances," he had said during the speech.

"Egyptians no longer consider Sisi a saviour who rescued the country from the imminent threat of an Islamist rule. Rather, many view him now as the actual threat to their welfare due to his constant economic failures," a prominent political analyst told The New Arab on condition of anonymity.

"The Egyptian regime has over the past few days been playing the regional security card in re-establishing its position amid an ongoing economic crisis that has so far had a tough toll on almost all social classes, especially middle and lower-income households," the analyst opined. "If he complies with the demand of resettling Palestinians in Sinai, it will likely be the final straw."

Egypt and Israel have technically been at peace since 1978, sharing strong diplomatic and economic relations.

However, the Egyptian people have long been at loggerheads with successive Egyptian regimes over normalisation, as many consider Israel a coloniser of Palestine since before the 1948 war, an oppressor of the Palestinian people, and a former occupier of the Sinai Peninsula.

High-level security sources were recently quoted by local and international news outlets as warning against a mass exodus of Palestinians, who were "forced to choose between death under Israeli bombing or displacement from their land."

Egypt has shut down the Rafah border crossing earlier last week until further notice. Conflicting reports have since marred the re-opening of the border crossing, Gaza's only exit to the outside world.

The crossing has been bombarded several times by Israeli airstrikes, the last time on Monday evening, 16 October, inflicting damages to the structure of the Egyptian side, as aid convoys have piled up in Rafah city in North Sinai, waiting to cross into Gaza to meet the dire needs of thousands of distressed Gazans.

A high-level Egyptian intelligence source told TNA that the Israeli part threatened to keep bombarding the two sides of the crossing unless the Israeli hostages taken by the Hamas faction were released.

"Neither will the Israelis allow the Palestinians holding dual citizenships or the injured leave the Gaza Strip," the intelligence source said, on condition of anonymity.

In recent years, Cairo has been instrumental in mediating efforts between Palestinian factions for political reconciliation, including the slated elections postponed by Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas.

"Egypt has further been attempting to reduce the critical impact of the ongoing conflict as unconfirmed news reports recently said that Egyptian intelligence had earlier warned Israel of an imminent Hamas offensive, information ignored by Israel," Said Sadek, professor of peace studies at Egypt-Japan University of Science and Technology, told TNA

"In doing so, Egypt exerted further diplomatic pressure on Israel by opening El-Arish Airport in North Sinai for international aid to be sent to Rafah. Any escalation of conflict will lead to instability, not only in Egypt but also in the entire region," Sadek added.   

After the military coup led by Sisi that overthrew Egypt's first democratically elected president, the late Mohamed Morsi, the Egyptian regime and media outlets loyal to it waged a war against Hamas and Palestinians in Gaza, accusing them of being behind militancy in North Sinai and allowing the infiltration of "jihadists" into Egypt.

Since 2007, Egypt and Israel have imposed a strict blockade on Gaza after Hamas assumed power following clashes with the rival Fatah faction that rules the occupied West Bank.

It was not until a decade later after Hamas dropped its affiliation to the Muslim Brotherhood, legally outlawed in Egypt since 2014, that the Egyptian regime softened its tone towards Hamas.