Doc's Talk: Egypt's Sinai on the edge: An Interview with Mosaad Abu Fagr

Wednesday, November 06, 2013

Egypt's Sinai on the edge: An Interview with Mosaad Abu Fagr

In an interview with Ahram Online, prominent activist Mosaad Abu Fagr says the Sinai Peninsula has borne the brunt of Egypt's economic and social instability since the 2011 uprising

Since the 2011 uprising, unrest in Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, and the ensuing lawlessness and economic volatility, has hit the tribal community especially hard.

Fault lines intensified during the rule of former Islamist president Mohamed Morsi amid a spike in militant activity by armed Jihadist groups in the Sinai. Following the 3 July removal of the Muslim Brotherhood from power amid mass popular protests against their rule, the Peninsula has entered a new phase, dubbed the "war against terrorism" by Egyptian authorities.

Ahram Online met Mosaad Abu Fagr – a local activist and a member of Egypt's constitutional draft committee – to discuss the current situation in the Sinai Peninsula, which borders Israel and the Palestinian Gaza Strip. Abu Fagr was jailed during the latter days of former autocrat Hosni Mubarak and set free days before the 2011 uprising that toppled the president. He now sees himself as both a revolutionary and a politician.

Abu Fagr was deeply bitter about the downward spiral in Sinai since 2011 uprising. He believes that Sinai's Bedouin population has borne the brunt of Egypt's post-revolution economic and social upheavals, which he blames on the failure of the successive governments that have come into power since 2011.

Ahram Online (AO): You seem to have transitioned from being a revolutionary to seeking out more official political roles. What inspired this transformation?

Mosaad Abu Fagr (MAF): It's common sense. We have watched Islamists warily over the past year jumping on the bandwagon and sabotaging the revolution. We are now trying to restore the damage they have caused.

AO: Do you think we should turn over a new leaf and try to restart with the fall of the Brotherhood?

MAF: No, the Brotherhood's leaf has not been turned over. They have brought the revolution to its knees. We need a new force to make a fresh start, but we are still being held back by those barbarians who instigate other barbarians.

AO: So you are trying to say a restoration process is necessary. Where does the development of Sinai fall on your agenda?

MAF: Egypt cannot develop without Sinai Peninsula. The situation in Sinai mirrors the situation in the rest of the country: the state's failures and successes. When Egypt was on its way to becoming a theocracy under deposed president Morsi, Sinai was morphed into a bastion of outsiders. Under former president Hosni Mubarak's authoritarian rule, the region was a police stronghold. Today, a major force seeks to turn it once again into a police base. The goal should be to make Sinai a civilian rather than a security stronghold.

AO: So a civilian region in the Sinai is your objective?

MAF: Yes, but the project is mainly based in the capital and centered on the establishment of equal citizenship, pluralism and human rights in Cairo… Mubarak's state ruled with an iron fist that bred terrorism in the Peninsual. Curing ills in the capital will provide a foundation for improvements in the Sinai, which mirrors developments in Cairo in many ways.

AO: Why has there been so little national attention toward development projects in the Sinai, and how important are such projects?

MAF: The government has not dedicated enough attention to this issue, given the magnitude of the problem. Instead, the state focused on patriotic songs and slogans. The current reality [in Sinai] is unsuitable for living, not even for a bird. How would a bird live while Apache helicopters hover overhead and tanks cover the ground?

AO: Does the Bedouin population in Sinai pose a security threat, given Islamist insurgents there and the smuggling taking place in tunnels between Sinai and the Gaza Strip?

MAF: Such accusations are baseless and only made by theorists who are out of touch with reality. They belong to the Nazi and fascist circles.

AO: You are linked toBedouin tribal communitythat are known to be connected to a hotbed of militant and jihadist groups. How has this influenced you?

MAF: That's a narrow, incomplete vision. The tribal community is part and parcel of this region, and it should be incorporated as such. Otherwise you will be faced with increasing radicalization and terrorism. The situation in Sinai cannot be seen in isolation from the situation in the capital. The Muslim Brotherhood's international organisation has sown and financed terrorism in Sinai and made the region a fertile ground for militancy. Tribal communities have inhabited Sinai for 5,000 years. It has only degenerated over the last three decades at the hands of Egyptian leadership that brought an external, not internal, virus that we should detect and combat.

AO: What do you think of the "southern model"?

MAF: The "southern model" is a riviera where Bedouins were driven into the mountains and are now suffering marginalisation and neglect. Some parts of south Sinai were meant to be a mere façade for tourist resorts, but the vast majority of areas are now suffering from water and electricity shortages. Even fishing areas were seized from them and have become places for tourists. Coral reefs are in peril because of this model.

AO: So how do you diagnose the problem?

MAF: International terrorism has turned Sinai into a battlefield. The region has long suffered at the hands of the police state and the failure of successive governments in Cairo. Before then, Sinai was a peaceful, secure place.

AO: What's the solution then?

MAF: The only way out is to have a democratic, pluralistic government that acknowledges the distinct culture of the Bedouin population and ensures them safety. Authorities must recognize that their operations in Sinai are not a panacea for all problems. Other counter-terrorism policies and development projects must be pursued in the region. Today some are attempting to lure people out of the region and vacate it.

AO: Talking about the distinctness of the Sinai Bedouins, do you think that the people of Sinai should put forward their own development plans?

MAF: Sinai residents have been proposing projects for 30 years and approaching governments with numerous development plans. The Egyptian state has contributed to making the region one with the world's highest number of prisoners. Central Sinai is one of the world's poorest regions according to the UN. Only a handful of young people are able to attend universities. The region needs a cultural plan, one that traces back to how people lived there peacefully five centuries ago. Sinai needs its own culture that has taken shape through time. We do not need it to be a total metamorphosis, which might engender terrorism or violence. One question that remains unanswered for me is how Sinai residents were turned into terrorists in the popular imagination.

AO: You're a member of the constitutional draft committee? Do you hope to incorporate Sinai-related articles in the new constitution?

MAF: Certainly, we need that. Sinai will always remain a mirror of the Egyptian state's success or failure. If you keep trying to stamp its people out, they will seek sanctuary in the mountains, where they can easily be co-opted by passing insurgents. We need to entrench development of the region and its culture in the constitution. Using terrorism as a tool of intimidation to prioritize certain policies over others is a well-known political practice. I am not saying terrorism does not exist. It does, but you have to address it in a way that is effective. Combating terrorism is never successfully done by attacking homes and planting mines to demolish them, even if it is [Osama] Bin Laden's house. Those people and their children have the right to live. We have to reformulate relations with the whole society in Sinai.

http://english.ahram.org.eg/News/84779.aspx

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The IDF’s Minorities in Numbers and Pictures

In honor of IDF Diversity Week, we present diversity through numbers and pictures. Each year, more and more Muslims, Christians, Druze, Bedouin and immigrants from around the world take on the responsibility of defending Israel.

MUSLIMS:

Muslim Arab Israelis are not required to draft in the IDF, but there are many who volunteer. In 2013, there were over 200 Muslims serving in the IDF and over 300 in the reserves.

Bedouins:

Bedouins are nomadic Muslims who were in Israel when modern borders were set in place and are now considered Israeli citizens. They are not required to draft but a growing number choose to enlist. In 2012, there were over 1,400 Bedouin Muslim soldiers doing regular IDF service and almost 1,500 in the reserves.

Read more:http://www.idfblog.com/2014/02/27/truth-idf-numbers-pictures/#more-34027

Are you aware that in 2013, Middle class taxes go up-significantly?

In January of next year, the federal income tax rate for middle-class taxpayers is scheduled to rise from 25 percent to 28 percent, and the payroll tax is scheduled to rise from 13.3 percent to 15.3 percent… This drives the marginal tax rate based on the aforementioned three taxes to 48.12 percent. Add in state and local property, corporate, excise, and other state and local taxes, and the percentage of each additional dollar that is taxed hovers around 50 percent… When half of each additional dollar earned is taxed away, taxpayers experience a disincentive to start businesses or expand existing ones. This leads to fewer jobs being created.

Why is HAMAS Inside Tampa Schools?

Clare Lopez

Kelly Miliziano, who teaches history classes at Steinbrenner High School in the Tampa, Florida area apparently thinks it’s perfectly OK to invite a senior official of a HAMAS-affiliated organization into her classroom to discuss Islam with her students. According to local media reports, not only has this been going on for years, but in spite of the civil and criminal proceedings that could result from such reckless negligence, the Hillsborough County school superintendent, Mary Ellen Elia, and the chairman of the school board, Candy Olson, also expressed approval for students under their responsibility to be exposed repeatedly to guest speaker, Hassan Shibly, who is the Executive Director for the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) in the Tampa area.
More...

Did You Know... Ignoring the Call to Islam will Bring Jihad

‘Conquest through Da’wa [proselytizing] that is what we hope for. We will conquer Europe, we will conquer America! Not through sword but through Da’wa.’
-- Yousef al-Qaradawi , Muslim Brotherhood spiritual leader The Arabic word ‘Da’wa’ means the “call to Islam.” But do not think that Da’wa is the same thing as an invitation to an optional holiday event. The classical Islamic doctrine of jihad mandates that enemies must be given the opportunity to convert to Islam or pay the jizya tax before it is permissible to attack them.
Clare M. Lopez

Who is being discriminated-facts tell the truth

Religious bias

Hate crimes motivated by religious bias accounted for 1,409 offenses reported by law enforcement. A breakdown of the bias motivation of religious-bias offenses showed:

65.4 percent were anti-Jewish.
13.2 percent were anti-Islamic.
9.5 percent were anti-other religion, i.e., those not specified.
4.3 percent were anti-Catholic.
3.8 percent were anti-multiple religions, group.
3.3 percent were anti-Protestant.
0.5 percent were anti-Atheism/Agnosticism/etc.

http://www.fbi.gov/about-us/cjis/ucr/hate-crime/2010/narratives/hate-crime-2010-incidents-and-offenses.

On March 31, 1977, the Dutch newspaper Trouw published an interview

with PLO executive committee member Zahir Muhsein. Here's what he said:

"The Palestinian people does not exist. The creation of a Palestinian state is only a means for continuing our struggle against the state of Israel for our Arab unity. In reality today there is no difference between Jordanians, Palestinians, Syrians and Lebanese. Only for political and tactical reasons do we speak today about the existence of a Palestinian people, since Arab national interests demand that we posit the existence of a distinct "Palestinian people" to oppose Zionism.

For tactical reasons, Jordan, which is a sovereign state with defined borders, cannot raise claims to Haifa and Jaffa, while as a Palestinian, I can undoubtedly demand Haifa, Jaffa, Beer-Sheva and Jerusalem. However, the moment we reclaim our right to all of Palestine, we will not wait even a minute to unite Palestine and Jordan."

In March 1977, Zahir Muhsein, a PLO executive, said:

"The Palestinian people does not exist. The creation of a Palestinian state is only a means for continuing our struggle against the state of Israel for our Arab unity. In reality today there is no difference between Jordanians, Palestinians, Syrians and Lebanese. Only for political and tactical reasons do we speak today about the existence of a Palestinian people, since Arab national interests demand that we posit the existence of a distinct Palestinian people to oppose Zionism."

"For tactical reasons, Jordan, which is a sovereign state with defined borders, cannot raise claims to Haifa and Jaffa, while as a Palestinian, I can undoubtedly demand Haifa, Jaffa, Beer-Sheva and Jerusalem. However, the moment we reclaim our right to all of Palestine, we will not wait even a minute to unite Palestine and Jordan."

The Arab Apartheid

Ben-Dror Yemini
In 1948, the Arab countries refused to accept the UN partition proposal and they launched a war of annihilation against the State of Israel which had barely been established. All precedents in this matter showed that the party that starts the war - and with a declaration of annihilation, yet - pays a price for it. Between 550,000 and 710,000 Arabs fled because of the war and a larger number of 850,000 Jews were expelled or fled from Arab countries (the "Jewish nakba").
Population exchanges and expulsions were the norm at that time, occurring in dozens of other conflict points and affecting about 52 million people. In all the population exchange precedents that occurred during or at the end of an armed conflict, there was no return of refugees to the previous region, which had turned into a new national state.
Only the Arab states acted completely differently from the rest of the world. Instead of assimilating the refugees, they crushed them despite the fact that they were their coreligionists and members of the Arab nation - instituting a regime of apartheid. So the "nakba" was not caused by the actual dispossession, which had also been experienced by tens of millions of others. The "nakba" is the story of the apartheid, oppression, abuse and denial of rights suffered by the Arab refugees at the hands of the Arab countries. (Maariv)

International Law and Military Operations in Practice - Col. Richard Kemp

"Islamist fighting groups study the international laws of armed conflict carefully and they understand it well. They know that a British or Israeli commander and his men are bound by international law and the rules of engagement that flow from it. They then do their utmost to exploit what they view as one of their enemy's main weaknesses. Their very modus operandi is built on the correct assumption that Western armies will normally abide by the rules, while these insurgents employ a deliberate policy of operating consistently outside international law. "

Lost Historical Moments

What Rabin’s last Knesset speech really said:repudiation of a Palestinian state

Rabin ruled out a fully sovereign Palestinian state :

“We view the permanent solution in the framework of State of Israel which will include most of the area of the Land of Israel as it was under the rule of the British Mandate, and alongside it a Palestinian entity which will be a home to most of the Palestinian residents living in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. We would like this to be an entity which is less than a state, and which will independently run the lives of the Palestinians under its authority.”

Rabin ruled out a total withdrawal from Judea and Samaria and thus a return to the pre-June 1967 borders :

“The borders of the State of Israel, during the permanent solution, will be beyond the lines which existed before the Six Day War. We will not return to the 4 June 1967 lines.”

Rabin ruled out withdrawing form the Jordan Valley:

“The security border of the State of Israel will be located in the Jordan Valley, in the broadest meaning of that term.”

Rabin ruled out uprooting settlement blocs, like the Gush Katif bloc in Gaza (which was subsequently uprooted by former Prime Minister Ariel Sharon):

“The establishment of blocs of settlements in Judea and Samaria, like the one in Gush Katif.

AND

Rabin ruled out removing any settlement before coming to a full peace agreement with the Palestinians:

“I want to remind you: we committed ourselves, that is, we came to an agreement, and committed ourselves before the Knesset, not to uproot a single settlement in the framework of the interim agreement, and not to hinder building for natural growth.”

Rabin insisted on Israel retaining full security control of the borders with Egypt and Jordan, contrary to Israel’s relinquishment of the Philadelphia Corridor on the border with Egypt:

“The responsibility for external security along the borders with Egypt and Jordan, as well as control over the airspace above all of the territories and Gaza Strip maritime zone, remains in our hands.”

Correcting Oslo Myths-Part 2

3) Kuttab laments that the post-1993 Oslo process resulted in a Palestinian Authority "whose ministers and legislators are not guaranteed passage between Gaza and the West Bank ...."

Before free passage or other perquisites, PA leaders were obligated, among other things, to eliminate the terrorist infrastructure in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, end anti-Israeli, antisemitic incitement in schools, mosques, and communications media, and resolve all outstanding issues through peaceful negotiations. They met none of these commitments, sometimes bolstering terrorism and greatly increasing incitement.

4) Kuttab complains that under Oslo the PA got "lightly armed police ---- but no real sovereignty over the land or contiguity between our communities in Gaza and the West Bank."

Oslo agreements repeatedly were revised, regardless of Palestinian non-compliance, until the authorized number of police grew from 8,000 to 40,000. Though they were to be the only armed forces in the territories, Israeli estimates early in the second intifada put the number of gunmen - police, "security services," terrorists, and armed gangs - at 85,000. Their armament reportedly included not only heavy machine guns and rocket-propelled grenades, but also anti-tank and anti-aircraft missiles.

Sovereignty was to be negotiated in the envisioned 1998 "final status" talks - after a five-year period of confidence-building. Palestinian leadership chronically undermined the process. Palestinian terrorism made the 1993 - 1998 Oslo period more deadly for Israelis than the 15 years preceding it.

The United States doesn't have contiguity between the lower 48 states and Alaska and Hawaii; territorial contiguity between the West Bank and Gaza Strip - that is, through the 20 miles of Israeli territory between them - was never promised and would destroy Israeli contiguity.

5) "Palestinians have been made to endure hundreds of checkpoints in the West Bank, an eight-foot wall deep in our territories, and tight Israeli control over borders."

The security barrier is not "deep in Palestinian territories," but rather encompasses less than 8 percent of Judea and Samaria, and is mostly a fence, rarely a wall; the land in question is not "our [Palestinian] territories" but disputed territory to which, according to the authors of U.N. Security Council Resolution 242, Jews as well as Arabs have claims; and there are no international borders, only the 1949 armistice lines with Jordan. Under 242, borders remain to be negotiated. As for checkpoints - like the security barrier and "tight Israeli control" - Palestinian Arabs precipitated these measures themselves. No terrorism and there would be no fence or tight Israeli control and few checkpoints - like before the first intifada.

Correcting Some Oslo Myths

1) In Oslo "Israeli, Palestinian and other world leaders promised that ... Palestinian sovereignty would be solidified."

No, they didn't. The 1993 Declaration of Principles and subsequent Oslo agreements outlined a process by which final status negotiations about the West Bank and Gaza Strip would be reached. The process required an end to anti-Israel terrorism and incitement and a commitment to peaceful negotiations. The PA, Fatah, Hamas, Islamic Jihad, the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, and other terrorist groups, sabotaged the process from the start.

2) "The reality is that, in defiance of U.N. Security Council Resolution 242, which states that it is inadmissible to occupy land by force, Palestinian territories are still under foreign military occupation."
Wrong again. Resolution 242 (1967) does note "the inadmissibility of the acquisition of territory by war." It also affirms the right of every state in the area "to live in peace with secure and recognized boundaries free from threats or acts of force." There were no "Palestinian territories." Jordan occupied the West Bank, Egypt controlled Gaza. Israel did not have "secure and recognized boundaries," so retention of some of those territories was possible under 242. Israel is not a "foreign" military occupier in the West Bank but, pending final negotiations, the lawful military administrator as a result of a successful war of self-defense.

Doc's Talk