Egypt was the first Arab country to recognize Israel in 1979, but now the relationship between the two countries is facing an acute crisis against the background of the war in Gaza and fears in Cairo of an influx of Palestinians to the Sinai Peninsula.
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Senior Egyptian officials familiar with the situation told the "Wall Street Journal" that relations between the two countries are at their lowest point for at least two decades.
The cold peace has cooled
The relationship is now further deteriorated by the Houthis in Yemen attacking ships in the Red Sea destined to pass through the Suez Canal "in a show of support" for the Gazans.
This year, Egypt lost about 40% of its income from crossing the Suez Canal compared to the same period last year, while the traffic of ships passing through it decreased by about 30%, according to the Suez Canal Authority.
If the crisis continues, Egypt stands to lose billions of dollars.
This is how the Egyptians acted in Rafah, photo: AP
Relations between Israel and Egypt are at an all-time low as officials on both sides exchange accusations and approach the point where the rift will be difficult to reconcile.
"The so-called cold peace has grown even colder both on the governmental level and on the civilian level," said Ofir Winter, a senior researcher at the Israel Institute for National Security Research.
The deepening crisis could have far-reaching consequences - Egypt is an important security partner for Israel.
"Since the war in Gaza started, it doesn't look good. It looks like there's a lack of trust on both sides," Mohammed Anwar Sadat, a former member of the Egyptian parliament, told the Wall Street Journal.
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Another matter that affected the relations between the countries is the Rafah crossing and the transfer of humanitarian aid to Gaza.
A senior Israeli official was quoted in an article in the "Wall Street Journal" as saying: "Egypt did not do a good enough job in inspecting the goods entering Gaza" - a charge that the Egyptians rejected.
bear hug
Egypt claims, the article says, that Israel should be responsible for the fate of the civilian population in the territory it occupies and that political parties in Egypt are concerned that Hamas and other armed groups will enter its borders and create a security risk.
At the same time, the Israeli legal team at the International Court of Justice claimed that Cairo is to blame for the failures in providing humanitarian aid to Gaza from the Egyptian side of the Rafah crossing.
In the "Wall Street Journal" it was written that these things led to a meeting of Egyptian intelligence and security officials to discuss whether to return their ambassador from Tel Aviv.
Trucks with humanitarian aid make their way from Egypt to Gaza through the Rafah crossing, photo: Getty Images
However, after almost five hours of discussions, they decided that instead it would be better to publish a statement denying the allegations, so as not to create another escalation in relations.
"We are in the middle of the war and tensions are natural," said the former US ambassador to Egypt and Israel, Daniel Kurtzer. "They are in a bear hug.
They need each other."
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