The Philadelphia corridor is a key area of the conflict with Hamas. The Netanyahu government is demanding to maintain control of the border because the terrorist group supplies its weapons through there, which is hindering an agreement on a ceasefire and the release of hostages.
The Chief of Staff of the Egyptian Armed Forces, Lieutenant General Ahmed Khalifa, made an unusual visit on Thursday to the Rafah border crossing, which connects Gaza with Egypt, where there was a deployment of soldiers and armored vehicles amid tensions with Israel over the so-called Philadelphia corridor.
The military inspected the security instructions being implemented in the “strategic northeastern direction,” said the narrator of the five-minute video released by the Egyptian Ministry of Defense, in which he goes to Khalifa accompanied by different units and traveling along the border with the Palestinian enclave.
He began his tour by visiting “the forces responsible for securing the Rafah border crossing,” according to the ministry.
The Chief of Staff stated that “The most important mission of the Armed Forces is to preserve the borders of the State, in all its strategic directions”, and assured that his units are “capable of defending the nation's borders.”
During the visit, he also inspected the security system of the border line in the northeast of the country and received a detailed explanation of the working methods and coordination between all the specialties.
In this way a “total dominance "on the international border line for 24 hours," the ministry said, showing in the video the operations room where the border and the Sinai Peninsula area are monitored.
The unusual video and unannounced tour came just one day after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told foreign media that the Philadelphia corridor, one of the main obstacles to reaching a truce between Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas, will not be abandoned.
Following these statements, an anonymous high-ranking Egyptian source told Egyptian media outlet Al Qahera News, which is close to Egyptian intelligence, that the Israeli government “has completely lost its internal and external credibility, and continues to promote its lies to cover up its failure.”
Netanyahu asserted that his presence in Philadelphia It is because they control the Hamas's “money machine”, which is the “Rafah crossing”, a clear reference to the alleged arms smuggling that exists from Egypt to Gaza and of which Cairo is accused.
Since the war began on October 7 following the Hamas attack on Israeli territory, the Rafah crossing has been vital for the entry of humanitarian aid into the devastated Palestinian enclave and also the only exit point for those who obtained permission to leave Gaza.
However, the Israelis invaded Rafah last May and captured the Palestinian side of the Rafah crossing, forcing the Egyptians to close the crossing.
The Israelis also entered the Philadelphia Corridor, a corridor of just 14 kilometers that was previously in Egyptian hands.
Both Cairo and Hamas insist that Israel must withdraw from the dividing line in order to agree to a truce agreement.
(with information from EFE)
Source: INFOBAE
Israel does not have to obey what Egypt and Hamas say. Israel has to do what is best for its country and its people. May God give PM Betanyahu intelligence and wisdom so that he can make correct decisions and give Israel victory over its enemies.
Israel must by no means withdraw from the Philadelphia Corridor, but rather stay and defend it, because by protecting it, it protects itself.