With Gaza tensions high, Egyptians and Israelis warn of a new war
“Are we going to war?” asks a worried Cairo saleswoman upon learning that she’s speaking to a journalist. The ominous question about the prospect of war between Egypt and Israel has crept into many conversations in the country.
These murmurs of war reveal growing concerns among a population worn down by successive economic crises and horrified by the devastation it has seen Israel inflict on Gaza and Lebanon. Over the past few weeks, the diplomatic row over US President Donald Trump’s proposal to forcibly displace Palestinians from Gaza to Egypt has intensified this anxiety, turning this chatter into fervent debate.
The same question, along with alarming answers, has ricocheted through Egyptian, Arab and Israeli media. An Israeli website published an AI-generated scenario of an attack destroying Egypt’s strategic High Dam. And an Egyptian YouTuber posted an AI-generated video of an attack on Israel’s nuclear reactor. Keyboard warriors trade accusations and threats on various social media platforms and TV shows debate what they see as evidence of each side’s readiness for war.
According to a report in Israeli newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth, this “war sentiment” is fueled by misleading information amplified by right-wing outlets in Israel. It debunked many of the claims circulating on social media and TV about an Egyptian military buildup at the border.
Amos Harel, a defense analyst at Israeli newspaper Haaretz, said he doesn’t know “how much (of) this is coordinated and how much is spontaneous,” but added that it may be in the interest of the Israeli far right to “stir the pot regarding Egypt” to divert attention from domestic criticism of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Families of hostages held in Gaza have accused Netanyahu of wavering on a deal to free the captives in order to appease hardliners in his government, which he has denied. Egypt and other mediators are trying to salvage the ceasefire, which went into effect in January and is now hanging by a thread.
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