Egyptian Terrorism Exposed
A new strategic analysis reveals how Egypt has used Gaza as a deniable weapon against Israel for over 75 years - not as a mistake, but by design.
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For decades, global diplomacy and Israeli defense strategy have framed Gaza as a local problem. It has been portrayed as a small, volatile enclave driven by internal poverty and extremism. This framing is dangerously incomplete. Gaza is not an isolated island of chaos. It is a calculated extension of Egyptian regional policy.
Behind every major escalation from Gaza stands a border out of Israeli control and a neighboring state whose role is largely ignored. That state is Egypt.
Gaza's Geography Makes It the Natural Gateway to Israel
Gaza is not Israel's south. It lies just 60 kilometers from Tel Aviv and 85 from Jerusalem. In strategic terms, that is the heart of the country. Historically, Gaza has served as the primary military and trade corridor into the land of Israel.
Three intercontinental routes meet in Gaza. One is the ancient sea road from the Nile to the Mediterranean ports. Another is the coastal axis from northern Egypt to the Israeli center. The third is the incense route from Arabia to the plains of Israel.
Control over Gaza means control over the arteries that lead to Israel’s demographic and industrial core. To lose Gaza is to open the gates to the country’s most populated areas.
Egypt Has Repeatedly Used Gaza as a Strategic Weapon
From 1948 to today, with the exception of a brief period between 1967 and 1993, Egypt has used Gaza as a tool against Israel. Even during those years, its ideological fingerprints remained. Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad were both born out of Egyptian political thought.
In 1951 Egypt trained fedayeen fighters in Gaza who murdered hundreds of Israelis. In 1965 Egyptian President Nasser allowed his forces to prepare military bases inside the Strip. In the 1970s and 1980s the Rafah area became a smuggling zone for weapons and jihadist ideas.
Since 1994 Egypt has permitted Gaza to develop into what Israeli intelligence describes as a laboratory of underground warfare. Tunnels. Rockets. Smuggled explosives. Foreign financing. The moment Egypt provides cover, Gaza ignites.
The Philadelphi Corridor Is Not a Peace Border
The Philadelphi Corridor is the 14-kilometer stretch of land that separates Gaza from Egypt. It is the only international border Israel does not control. And it is the most dangerous.
This corridor is not a peaceful boundary. It is an operational lifeline for terror infrastructure. It enables weapons smuggling, facilitates the movement of trained operatives and serves as a channel for ideological and financial support from Iran and other hostile actors.
Egypt is not unaware of these activities. Its silence is deliberate. Gaza's instability serves Cairo by deflecting internal pressures and allowing it to maintain relevance as a regional powerbroker. For Egypt, the chaos in Gaza is useful.
The Warnings Came from the Left as Well
This is not a partisan theory. Israeli leaders from across the political spectrum have warned for decades about the strategic risks of giving up control in Gaza and Rafah.
Chaim Bar-Lev, Israel's Chief of Staff and later a Minister of Police, said Gaza would become a permanent terror base with Egyptian backing. Shlomo Hillel, a Labor Party minister, warned that if Israel withdrew from the region, Ashkelon would become the new front line. Ra’anan Weitz, a veteran Labor strategist, called Gaza a massive time bomb.
Even researchers at the Jaffe Center in Tel Aviv University, a left-leaning think tank, warned in the late 1980s that withdrawal from the Gush Katif area would turn Gaza into a weapons-based economy.
Every Withdrawal Led to War
There have been four major Israeli withdrawals related to Gaza. Each one was followed by war or an explosion of terror.
In 1982, Israel left the Rafah region. The First Intifada followed. In 1993, the Oslo Accords introduced Palestinian Authority control. This led to the Second Intifada. In 2005, the disengagement removed all Israeli presence. That led to the rise of Hamas, rocket fire on Tel Aviv and eventually the horrors of October 7.
The numbers are undeniable. From 1994 to 2024, more Israelis were killed in acts of terror than in the entire period between 1947 and 1993. The increase was nearly fourfold.
Conclusion
Gaza is not just Gaza. It is Egypt's strategic extension. The Philadelphi Corridor is not just a border. It is Israel's most critical line of defense.
Any Israeli security doctrine that ignores Egypt’s role in sustaining Gaza’s terror infrastructure is bound to fail. Every diplomatic effort that treats Egypt as a passive observer is based on fiction.
History does not repeat itself. It strikes harder each time we ignore it.
The findings and historical analysis presented in this article are based on a Hebrew-language policy research paper published by the Yachin Institute for National Strategy in September 2024, focusing on the Philadelphi Corridor and Egypt’s long-term strategic use of the Gaza Strip. The report draws on military history, demographic data, and geopolitical risk assessments across eight decades.