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Egypt Saves Face in Prisoner Swap
(Christian Science Monitor) Kristen Chick - The military "arrested [Ilan] Grapel in order to send a message to the Egyptian public that Egypt is targeted by Western powers," says Emad Gad of the Al Ahram Center for Political and Strategic Studies. "After sending this message, they could get rid of the tool - Grapel. But they don't want to say, 'We fabricated the story [that he was a spy],'...so they have to reach the deal with the Israeli side." Israel did Egypt's military council a favor by giving Egypt a way out of the situation without losing face, says Gad. The military council is also sending a message to the West that it will maintain Egypt's ties with Israel. Had Grapel truly been a spy, says Gad, Egypt would have exacted a much higher price for his release. The deal was not costly to Israel because the prisoners released were not accused of terrorism or espionage and were mainly Bedouins held on smuggling charges. Their release will win the Egyptian military points with the Bedouin in Sinai, whose cooperation it needs to bring security to the region. And empowering the military council currently ruling Egypt by handing it a victory is in Israel's interest, says Eli Shaked, a former Israeli ambassador to Cairo. "This is the interest of Israel that the military council governs a stable Egypt."