Egypt Demolishes Hundreds of Sinai Homes to create Gaza Buffer Zone
Egyptian armed forces began bulldozing houses along the country’s border with Gaza on October 30. Egypt wants to create a buffer zone to prevent weapons and Islamist militants from entering and exiting the war-torn territory. President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi’s decision to implement this policy forced over 10,000 people to rapidly evacuate their homes and showcased Egypt’s increased commitment to combating militant fundamentalism in the region. This initiative came after an October 25 assault by Islamist fighters in the Sinai Peninsula that killed thirty-one Egyptian soldiers, making it the deadliest attack carried out against the country’s army in several decades. El-Sisi immediately responded by imposing a state of emergency in the peninsula, noting the necessity of taking “determined steps in fighting the extremists” as part of a larger campaign “that will take a long time.”
Human Rights Violations: Displaced Persons
The forced evacuation of homes near the border highlights Egypt’s increasingly authoritarian tendencies and questionable human rights record. Human rights organizations condemned the government’s displacement of thousands of people living near the Rafah border. Many viewed this deed as an arbitrary perpetration of injustices against the civilian populace. As Sinai-based human rights activist Massaad Abu Fair noted, “displacement means the Egyptian state is declaring war on the Sinai local tribes.”
On the contrary, government officials argue that alternative methods to securing the territory near the Gaza border have failed. Therefore, relocating residents is a measure of last resort to ensure stability in the region. Security expert and former general brigadier Khaled Okasha argues that the fight against terrorism needs to be accelerated and “hence, new methods have to be implemented.” While relocating people may seem
unfavorable, Okasha adds that recent events necessitated moving citizens to the “safer” Al-Arish area.
Despite declared security concerns, the forced evacuation is the latest in a long line of human rights abuses that the Egyptian government has been accused of in recent years. According to a report by the Forum of Independent Egyptian Human Rights Organizations, “successive [Egyptian] governments, despite their political differences, have failed to curb violations or work towards the protection of rights through security sector, economic, social, or judicial reform.” Such concerns are exemplified by the judiciary’s April 2014 decision to sentence 683 members of the Muslim Brotherhood to death in a mass trial, an event that Amnesty International characterized as “grotesque.”
Furthermore, the eviction was accompanied by a decree placing public facilities such as power stations, bridges and roads under the protection of the military, deepening the institution’s influence in the civilian sphere. "It is confirmation of a conviction we have had for months,” Arab Network for Human Rights head Gamal Eid said. “Egypt is solidifying the rule of the police and the military.”
The Rafeh Border: Consensus Strengthens Egypt-Israel Alliance, hurts Gaza
The Rafeh border is a vital intersection for trade and transportation between Gaza and its neighboring countries. Although, the Egyptian government has pledged to reopen the Gaza border after the completion of antiterrorism operations in Sinai, it seems unlikely. Especially after Egyptian authorities discovered hundreds more tunnels extending underneath the border. It is possible that militants used these passageways to carry out attacks inside Egypt.
Egypt’s decision to close the crossing exemplifies the government’s close security relationship with Israel to mitigate the threat posed by Gazan militancy. During Israel’s recent Operation Protective Edge, Egypt assisted with the demolition of hundreds of smuggling tunnels underneath the Gaza border. However, Cairo’s hardline stance is not limited to Gaza. On October 26, the government refused to allow a high-ranking party delegation from Hamas to enter Cairo. Egypt’s deputy interior minister Samih Bashadi, recently accused “Palestinian operatives” of the Sinai assault that killed thirty-one soldiers, implicating Hamas and its affiliates for the attack.
As recent initiatives in the Sinai have illustrated, the Egyptian government has committed to a path of assisting its Israeli allies in combating a shared threat. While the extent to which Tel Aviv and Cairo may cooperate in the future remains uncertain.
Nevertheless, the closure of the Rafeh border has detrimental effects on the Gaza population. There are only three border crossings that lead out of Gaza. According to Eyad al-Bozom, the spokesman for the Palestinian National Authority Ministry of the Interior, the Egyptian government “should evaluate the situation and understand the tragedy of the Gaza Strip populations is due to the continuation of the closure of Rafah crossing point."