“Vicious circle of tensions”
Police officer in Egypt shoots two Israelis
October 8, 2023, 1:24 p.m
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After the attack by the Hamas militia, concerns about attacks on Israelis abroad are also growing. Hatred of the neighboring country is also still present among Egyptians. In Alexandria, a police officer shoots two Israeli tourists and an Egyptian.
One day after the radical Islamic Hamas attack on Israel, a police officer in neighboring Egypt shot dead two Israeli tourists and an Egyptian. Another Israeli was injured, the Israeli Foreign Ministry said. The police officer shot “indiscriminately” at an Israeli tour group in the city of Alexandria. The police officer was arrested.
A day earlier, Hamas had fired thousands of rockets into Israel from the Gaza Strip and had also invaded Israeli territory with fighters at various points. Hamas gunmen killed civilians on the streets and in their homes and took an unknown number of people hostage, including soldiers. In retaliation, Israel has been carrying out air strikes against targets in the Gaza Strip since Saturday.
On the Israeli side, more than 200 people were killed and around 1,000 injured; Hamas, which rules in the Gaza Strip, reported 313 deaths and 1,990 injuries in the Palestinian territory on Sunday morning. Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi warned on Saturday of a “vicious circle of tensions that threatens regional stability and security.” Egypt, which borders the Gaza Strip, was the first Arab country to sign a peace agreement with Israel in 1979.
Rarely violent incidents
The country is considered an important mediator in the Middle East conflict. However, hatred of Israel is still strong among many people. Egypt is nevertheless extremely popular with Israeli tourists. Regular direct flights operate between Cairo and Tel Aviv. Violent incidents have only occurred rarely in recent years.
An incident occurred in June: According to the Israeli army, an Egyptian police officer shot three Israeli soldiers on the Israeli side. According to Egyptian sources, the member of the “security forces” had crossed the border in pursuit of drug smugglers. During an exchange of fire, the fatal shots were fired, killing three Israelis and the Egyptian.