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Egypt official: Mursis letter to Israel is fake
JERUSALEM: A letter to Israel from Egypts new president hoping for regional peace kicked up a stir Tuesday when the Egyptian leaders Islamist movement denied he sent it. Israel insisted the letter was genuine.The spat underlined the touchy nature of Egyptian-Israeli relations, always frosty but now especially sensitive in the wake of Muslim Brotherhood victories in Egyptian elections. It also appeared to show some disarray in the fractured Egyptian government. The letter, ostensibly sent by Egyptian President Muhammad Mursi, was a response to a message from Israeli President Shimon Peres, conveying Israels good wishes for the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. The return letter, released by the Israeli presidents office, was on the stationery of the Egyptian Embassy in Tel Aviv. In it, Mursi appeared to write in English, I am looking forward to exerting our best efforts to get the Middle east Peace Process back to its right track in order to achieve security and stability for all peoples of the region, including that Israeli people. The Israeli presidents name was spelled Perez. Then a spokesman for Mursi, Yasser Ali, said in Cairo that Mursi had not written a letter to the Israeli president at all. This is totally untrue, Ali said, calling the letter a fabrication. He blamed two Israeli newspapers for manufacturing the letter though it was released by the presidents office in Jerusalem. An official in Peress office speaking anonymously because the issue concerned sensitive diplomatic relations between the two countries said the presidents aides received the official communique Tuesday from the Egyptian ambassador to Israel, both by registered mail and by fax from the embassy in Tel Aviv. Peress office asked the Egyptian ambassador if it could publicize the letter or if it should be kept secret, the official said. The Egyptian envoy phoned Mursis office to inquire, the official said, and then told Peres aides that Mursis staff had given the green light to make the letter public. Peress office sent reporters a copy of what was said to be the faxed letter. The top of the letter featured a time stamp with Tuesdays date, the phone number from which the fax was sent, and the label EGY EMB TEL AVIV. The fax number, which appeared to be printed automatically from the machine that sent the message, was a number listed on Israels Foreign Ministry website as belonging to the Egyptian Embassy in Israel. The Egyptian Foreign Ministry did not provide an immediate response on the issue. This could be a symptom of Egypts murky governing situation. Though Mursi has taken office, it is still not clear what his powers are. The military council that took over after longtime President Hosni Mubarak was ousted last year assumed some presidential powers. Mursi has pledged to respect Egypts international treaties, but the Brotherhood has said it may need to make adjustments to the Israel-Egypt peace agreement. The movement historically has been hostile to Israel. The Ramadan message was Peress second letter to Mursi since he took office after winning Egypts first-ever free presidential election. The Israeli presidents first letter, accompanied by a note from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, was sent in late June. It congratulated Mursi on his election victory and emphasized the importance of peace to both Israel and Egypt. The text of Netanyahus letter was not released, but an official in his office said the letter emphasized the importance of maintaining the peace treaty. Posted by: Steve White 2012-08-01 |
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