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Source: http://www.bitterlemons-international.org/inside.php?id=410
The War on Terror is Paramount at the Sinai-Gaza Border
Maj.-Gen. (res.) Amos Gilad (bitterlemons-international.org) - Major-General (res.) Amos Gilad is head of political military policy in the Israel Ministry of Defense. He negotiated the Sinai-Gaza border agreement on behalf of Israel. * The agreement [with Egypt over the Sinai-Gaza border] was achieved after 15 months of negotiation. The mission is to prevent terror and the smuggling of weapons. The equipment of the [Egyptian] force is in keeping with the mission, and there are no violations of the Israel-Egypt peace treaty annex. This force will not create any military threat to Israel. It accords with the Egyptian effort to prevent terror from Egypt. The war on terror is paramount. * Both countries understand that the most important issue now is stability in the Middle East and coping with terror. There are areas of disagreement, of course, it's no secret, but at this time the factors uniting us are more powerful than those weakening our cooperation. * This agreement between Israel and Egypt is focused on a small part of the border, 13 km from the Mediterranean to Kerem Shalom. After we evacuate the Philadelphi strip, the border will be between Egyptians and Palestinians. Most of the Israeli-Egyptian border, around 206 km, will stay without any change. Egypt can cope and prevent smuggling there if it wants to. * The profile of terror in Egypt is very low because of the Egyptian success. Sinai experienced terrible terror, first against us and then against the Egyptians themselves. But the Egyptian government is determined to destroy the terrorists. * [Regarding people entering Gaza from Sinai], what we need are guarantees that al-Qaeda and Hizballah and other known terrorists won't enter Gaza. The issue is under discussion and I hope some agreement will be worked out. It's a difficult issue because until now our presence prevented the entry of terrorists. We need guarantees that any new arrangement will work.