[Begin-Sadat Center for Strategic Studies/Bar-Ilan University] Hillel Frisch - The Palestinians have been pushed to a lower rung on the world's priority ladder. Regional conflicts detracting from Palestinian status include Iran's nuclear ambitions, Iraq, Darfur, and Somalia. Essentially, Israel's adversaries act independently. This was exemplified by the Palestinian's quiescence while Hizbullah waged war in Lebanon. Thus far, Egypt has turned a blind eye to Hamas-Iranian cooperation on the assumption that bleeding Israel is more important to Egyptian interests than the penetration of Iranian influence into the Palestinian arena through Hamas, or even the implications of Hamas' power on Egypt's domestic attempts to contain its local Islamists, mainly the Muslim Brotherhood.
2007-01-09 01:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive