A well-placed source at the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces has said Egypt is currently studying the possibility of modifying the Camp David Agreement with regard to the number of military troops and equipment allowed into Sinai.
However, an Israeli source told the French news agency AFP that Egypt has not submitted a request in this regard.
At a ministerial meeting on Sunday, Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu said his country is willing to consider an Egyptian request to bolster its troops in Sinai, although he said earlier there was no reason for the treaty to be modified.
Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak said the government is not willing to grant Egypt such request.
“We had agreed [to such requests] in the past as a temporary measure to combat terrorism,” he said, pointing to “Operation Eagle,” which was carried out by Egyptian military and police forces to hunt down terrorists in Sinai.
Earlier, Barak told the Israeli newspaper Haaretz and the British newspaper The Economist that it was in Israel’s interest to allow increased military presence in Sinai, so as to control what he called a chaotic situation along the border.
Translated from the Arabic Edition
