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After Much Hope, Israel and Egypt are Distant Neighbors
(Los Angeles Times) David Lamb - The loneliest diplomatic job in Egypt these days belongs to Gideon Benami, the Israeli ambassador, who has been isolated by the deterioration of relations between two countries that signed a peace treaty 23 years ago. With President Hosni Mubarak having recalled his ambassador to Jerusalem and frozen contacts with Israel, Benami finds himself cut off at his heavily guarded downtown embassy and his residence in suburban Maadi. Egyptian officials are largely inaccessible to him, and even friendly countries sometimes drop him from the guest list because mixing Israeli and Arab diplomats could make for an uncomfortable gathering.