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Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/01/15/AR2009011503296.html
Cairo's Bargain
[Washington Post] Jim Hoagland - The besieged Palestinians of Gaza matter to the people of Egypt. But peace with Israel has come to matter more. Hosni Mubarak refuses to risk his nation's peace with Israel by opening the Egyptian frontier to the Palestinians trapped in Gaza or showing any support for Hamas. Mubarak has put Egypt first, turning Cairo into the global pivot for efforts to reach a new cease-fire between Jerusalem and Hamas. And his regime has benefited from a nationalistic backlash to harsh criticism from Iran and radical Arab movements. "This is the first time I agree with Mubarak on anything," says Hisham Kassem, a leading figure in the democratic opposition and a newspaper publisher. "He has kept Egypt from being drawn back into a war with Israel. People are not ready to take that risk for the sake of Hamas. Suddenly Mubarak is made to look like a stability-minded statesman."