Morsi's warning sign for Jerusalem

The situation in Sinai requires the presence of the Egyptian military in the area that has been under Egyptian sovereignty since the peace treaty was signed. There is no argument on the facts of the matter. Jerusalem has even encouraged such a presence. But it would be best if the move is coordinated between the two neighbors, in accordance with the agreement. Remarks made on Tuesday by Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi's legal adviser concerning Morsi's desire to amend the Camp David Accords are worrisome only in one regard — the fact that Egypt is considering unilateral changes.

There are several scenarios through which we can understand the Middle East. Some of them are optimistic. But we have seen that it is always the pessimistic scenarios that have a tendency to come true. If someone had promised the rule of the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt two years ago, we would have viewed it negatively. If they had said to us that within a few weeks of Morsi's victory at the polls, all the generals responsible for maintaining the peace treaty with Israel would be sacked, we would surely have viewed that even more negatively. And that is exactly what happened.

Egypt will not abandon the peace treaty tomorrow. There is a limit to what Morsi can do. But things have certainly changed. The new generals owe him their ranks and authority. In any other situation, we could have congratulated Egypt on some of its changes. If the changes had happened anywhere else in the world, we may have even applauded them. But in our neighborhood, if anything can go wrong, it usually does.

Sacked Egyptian Defense Minister Mohamed Tantawi and Chief of Staff Sami Enan received medals of honor on Tuesday. It was an honorable way to part from two people who were committed to the Camp David Accords, which will soon undergo changes. Their replacements are more loyal to Morsi than they are to the accords — something that is definitely a warning sign for Jerusalem.

For now, Morsi enjoys the support of many in Egypt. The Tahrir Square revolution shook former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, the military, and the peace treaty. Morsi has so far shaken two of those. There is no better way to boost his power and popularity than to amend the Camp David Accords in a way that best suits Egypt. Anything that is unpopular in Jerusalem is good for the Egyptian street. And Morsi, more than anyone else, knew how to leverage the attack in Sinai to gain more power in his country.

It is hard to believe that Morsi's decisions surprised the Americans. We can only hope that the U.S. government is aware of all possible scenarios, even the most pessimistic ones. But it seems that in the "new" Middle East, a warning sign for Jerusalem is not viewed as such in Washington. And this is another reason to worry.

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