Egypt dealing with Ben-Gvir, Netanyahu as 2 separate Israeli governments

Itamar Ben-Gvir

10 Jan 2023; MEMO: The Egyptian government deals with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir as two separate governments rather than being members of the same coalition, an anonymous Egyptian source has said.

The official told the London-based Asharq Al-Awsat news outlet that Egypt deals with the new Israeli government as two governments, the first being an extremist government at home that is led by Itamar Ben-Gvir, and the second presents itself internationally as more moderate, and is led by Netanyahu.

The Israeli channel added that Ben-Gvir's storming of Al-Aqsa Mosque last week was a test that aimed to gauge reactions to the implementation of the Israeli far right's plans for Al-Aqsa. Citing the unnamed Egyptian source, Asharq Al-Awsat added that the storming of Al-Aqsa will affect the Israeli government's relations with Jordan and Egypt.