Islamic Jihad angry with Egypt 'betrayal' ahead of Gaza raids

Four hours before Israel began bombing the Gaza Strip on Friday, Egyptian mediators told the Palestinian Islamic Jihad movement that Israel was not looking for an escalation, and would respond "positively" to a request to release two PIJ members from prison. An Israeli cabinet meeting to be held on the Sunday would announce this as a breakthrough in negotiations, the movement was reportedly told.

The assurances were conveyed to a senior member of the PIJ's political bureau by Egyptian mediator Brigadier Ahmed Abdul Khaliq at noon on Friday local time, four hours and twenty minutes before the first Israeli air strike struck the Gaza Strip, sources close to the PIJ told Middle East Eye.

In the first detailed account of the negotiations that preceded Israel's latest offensive on Gaza, MEE can reveal there is now "considerable anger" towards Egyptian intelligence services from the PIJ over the role played by Cairo in the hours before Israel launched its most recent bombing campaign.

"[The PIJ] believe they have been betrayed by the Egyptians and that they were part of the game - to make them feel relaxed and secure just before the air strikes took place," a senior Palestinian source close to the PIJ told MEE.

"There is a lot of anger and tension within Islamic Jihad because of the role of [the] Egyptian mediation, because they consider the Egyptians gave them misleading information and hints just before the air strikes. As a result of this information, the Islamic Jihad relaxed and was unprepared for the air strikes."

Sources close to the PIJ told MEE that Abdul Khaliq incorrectly told Khaled al-Batsh, a senior member of the PIJ's political bureau, that there had been a "breakthrough" in indirect negotiations.

Israeli intelligence agents reportedly passed the following message to the PIJ through Egyptian intelligence: "We want to end this escalation. Give us until Sunday and we are pushing them [Israel's political leaders] to agree."