{"id":17334,"date":"2025-09-08T16:25:47","date_gmt":"2025-09-08T14:25:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/?p=17334"},"modified":"2026-10-24T15:04:19","modified_gmt":"2026-10-24T13:04:19","slug":"egypt-israel-4","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/egypt-israel-4\/","title":{"rendered":"Gas as Leverage: How Will Cairo Respond to Netanyahu\u2019s Threats?"},"content":{"rendered":"

In a step that observers considered a new phase of pressure on Cairo to accept the plan to displace Palestinians from the Gaza Strip to the Sinai Peninsula, newspapers affiliated with the Israeli occupation government promoted reports<\/span> stating<\/span><\/a> that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had issued instructions not to proceed with implementing the huge gas deal<\/span> signed<\/span><\/a> with Egypt about a month earlier, worth about $35 billion for the supply of 130 billion cubic metres until 2040, without his personal approval, with the aim of linking implementation of the agreement to new conditions and guarantees from Egypt, based on claims that Cairo had violated the Camp David Treaty through military reinforcements in Sinai.<\/span><\/p>\n

For its part, Cairo considered Netanyahu’s statements to lack “realism”, and the response came sharply from the head of the State Information Service, Diaa Rashwan, who<\/span> affirmed<\/span><\/a> that what Netanyahu announced lacks political and economic realism, stressing that Cairo does not see these threats as a danger to its security or to its stability in the energy sector. Rashwan said in televised statements: “I advise him to cancel the deal if he is able to bear its economic consequences”, in a clear indication that the political and financial cost would fall mainly on the Israeli side.<\/span><\/p>\n

Egypt also<\/span> reiterated<\/span><\/a> that it will not submit to any Israeli pressure, whether on the energy file or on the issues of Gaza and the border, and described these threats as cards of political pressure aimed at undermining the steadfast Egyptian position on the Palestinian cause and its rejection of the displacement of Palestinians. Official statements indicated that Egypt possesses the capacity to protect its national security and its economy, and that the loss from the deal would fall mainly on Israel.<\/span><\/p>\n

In this context, two sources, one diplomatic and the other security, revealed to Zawia3 that Cairo pays little attention to Netanyahu’s statements about freezing the gas agreement, and considers them a show aimed at public opinion inside the occupation state and an attempt to cover up Tel Aviv’s failure to achieve its goals in the Gaza Strip, foremost among them the project of displacing the Palestinians. The two sources affirmed that Egypt has drawn a clear red line, namely its categorical rejection of any scenario leading to displacement; apart from that, it is ready to deal with various developments by virtue of the alternatives and strategic options it has in the energy sector and in its wider regional files.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The diplomatic source stressed that Cairo will activate its response options in reaction to actions, not to statements, explaining that his country is capable of protecting its resources and securing safe alternatives, as it is proceeding with implementing broader agreements for liquefying and exporting gas in a way that preserves its interests. As for bilateral relations, the two sources described them as “the most tense in years”, affirming that Cairo currently has no intention of returning to the level of exchanging ambassadors. At the same time, they stressed that Egypt still prefers the diplomatic option in dealing with all foreign files, but remains ready to use whatever tools are necessary to preserve its national security and safeguard its strategic assets.<\/span><\/p>\n

Earlier, reports indicated that the Egyptian army had<\/span> reinforced<\/b><\/a> its military presence in north-eastern Sinai and raised the level of field readiness by deploying additional tanks and armoured vehicles around the Rafah crossing and the areas adjacent to it, which worries Tel Aviv. Observers believe that this military move, although defensive in nature, carries within it a clear message that Cairo will not allow any security breach or direct threat coming from the Palestinian south, especially with growing talk in the Israeli media about “safe corridors” or buffer zones on the edges of Gaza that could be exploited to force Palestinians to flee into Sinai.<\/span><\/p>\n

According<\/span> to official sources<\/span><\/a> and military experts, the Egyptian army has deployed about 88 military battalions in Sinai, comprising nearly 42,000 soldiers, in addition to 3 complete military divisions and more than 1,500 tanks and armoured vehicles, as well as projects to develop military airports and expand their runways, and to strengthen air defence networks and naval piers on the Mediterranean and the Red Sea. Observers compare these figures with what the peace treaty stipulates, which sets the maximum for Egyptian forces in the area at about 50 battalions and only 22,000 soldiers, which shows the size of the gap between the current reality and the original security arrangements that were put in place to ensure a delicate balance in the strategically important peninsula.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Recommended reading:<\/b> Israel’s Gas in Egypt: The Biggest Deal in Decades<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n

What Is the Nature of the Disputed Deal?<\/b><\/h1>\n

On 7 August last, Tel Aviv announced the conclusion of “the largest gas deal in its history” with Cairo, worth $35 billion, to export about 130 billion cubic metres of natural gas until 2040, or until the quantities stipulated in the contract are fulfilled,<\/span> according to<\/span><\/a> what the Israeli Energy Minister, Eli Cohen, revealed.<\/span><\/p>\n

The deal<\/span><\/a>, which was signed between Israeli companies, most notably “NewMed”, the partner in the giant Leviathan field, and the Egyptian side, does not represent merely an economic agreement; rather, it redraws the map of mutual dependence between two states bound by complex political relations and a tense popular memory. It multiplies<\/span> threefold<\/span><\/a> the volume of exports that began in 2019 (60 billion cubic metres at the time), making Egypt the largest destination for Israeli gas in the region.<\/span><\/p>\n

2025 saw the largest gas deal in the two countries' history, worth $35 billion<\/figcaption>

Value of Egypt's gas import contracts with Israel<\/p>

<\/div>
<\/div>
Year<\/th>Value (USD billion)<\/th><\/tr><\/thead>
2018 (original contract)<\/td>15.0<\/bdi><\/td><\/tr>
2020 (after 2019 amendment)<\/td>19.5<\/bdi><\/td><\/tr>
2025 (expanded deal)<\/td>35.0<\/bdi><\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/div>
Daily News Egypt (2019), JPT (2020), Al Arabiya (2025) \u00b7 Volumes: 64 bcm over 10 years in the 2018 contract, raised to 85.3 bcm over 15 years by the October 2019 amendment; about 130 bcm to 2040 in the 2025 deal<\/span>