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Egyptian journalists, lawmakers and media figures reacted sharply after Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said Egypt could lose the Sinai Peninsula if it attacked Israel, remarks made on the eve of Egypt’s commemoration of the 1973 war.
“What would make Egypt not attack us? The understanding that if they attack us, there will be no Sinai at least,” Smotrich said in a video interview with Haredi news site Hashtiblach.
He added that such a scenario “will not happen again.”
There was no immediate official response from Egyptian authorities.
Ahmed Moussa, host of the “Ala Masoulity” program on Egypt’s Sada El-Balad channel, responded to Smotrich during a live broadcast.
“If you do something crazy, there will be no place called Israel. It is that clear,” Moussa said, referring to the possibility of war involving Egypt and Sinai.
He said 120 million Egyptians were prepared to defend their country and described Sinai as a “red line,” adding that Egypt’s armed forces were ready to defend the country “at all times and under all circumstances.”
Egyptian journalist and lawmaker Mostafa Bakry also criticized Smotrich in a post on U.S. social media platform X.
Bakry accused Smotrich of threatening Egypt with taking Sinai and said the Egyptian army was prepared to confront anyone threatening the country’s national security.
Amr Adib, a media figure known for being close to the Egyptian government, also reacted during his “Al-Hekaya” program on MBC Masr.
Adib warned that any confrontation with Egypt would have severe consequences for Israel, mentioning Tel Aviv, Ben Gurion Airport, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Egyptian social media content creator Loay El-Khatib also criticized Smotrich, accusing him of lacking political understanding and making irrational statements.
Smotrich’s comments came on the eve of Egypt’s commemoration of the Oct. 6, 1973, war, which eventually paved the way for the return of the Sinai Peninsula after years of Israeli occupation.
Earlier Monday, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi said Egypt’s armed forces remained ready to defend the country, its resources, and its national security “at all times and under any circumstances.”
Egypt and Israel signed a peace treaty in Washington, D.C., in March 1979 following the 1978 Camp David Accords.
Under the agreement, Israel withdrew from the Sinai Peninsula, which it had occupied in 1967, and the territory returned to Egyptian sovereignty under a demilitarized status.
The treaty ended the state of war between Egypt and Israel and has remained the foundation of formal relations between the two countries for decades.
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