Tensions between Cairo and Ankara have reached unprecedented levels since the ouster of former Egyptian president and Turkey ally Mohamed Morsi in 2013, an Israeli think-tank has said.
The Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs said the announcement by Egypt’s army on July 8 to apprehend Turkish intelligence elements in North Sinai was a serious twist in the already tense ties between both countries. It added that Egypt was accusing Turkey of involvement with militants who had killed hundreds of Egyptian police and army officers since Morsi’s overthrow.
“Bearing this in mind, and assuming that the facts reported by the military spokesman are correct, this could mean the two countries have reached an unprecedented degree of hostility,” the center said in a report on Monday.
“Assuming the facts revealed by the Egyptian military are correct, this would dramatically confirm the often-denied fact by Turkish officials of the existing links between the Turkish regime and the Islamic State militants, as well as with other jihadist groups fighting in Syria and Iraq,” it added.
According to the center, this development could alienate Ankara from other regional allies, most specifically Gulf states, as well as its relations with the United States’ administration and the US Congress.
