June 24, 2012 4:31 PM | CBS News
The Arab Spring - Israel jittery after Brotherhood victory in Egypt
<iframe width="640" height="480" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/7SStUuUbc_U" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
JERUSALEM - The Muslim Brotherhood victory in Egyptian presidential elections, announced Sunday, has
raised fears in Israel that its strategic 1979 peace agreement with its southern neighbor could be in danger.
In contrast, in the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip, ecstatic residents flocked into the streets, fired guns in the air and
handed out candy in celebration.
Israel's peace agreement with Egypt, its first with an Arab country, is a cornerstone of Israeli security. The agreement
ended decades of hostilities, with to five wars and thousands of deaths.
While relations have never been warm, Egypt has upheld the deal, keeping its bordering Sinai peninsula largely
demilitarized, allowing the Israeli military to focus on other hostile borders with the Palestinians, Syria and Lebanon.
In a statement, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he respected the results of Egypt's democratic process
and hoped the peace agreement would remain intact.
With the Egyptian military still the ultimate power in Egypt, senior Israeli defense officials who maintain contacts with
Egypt said Sunday that they do not expect any immediate changes in relations.
The Muslim Brotherhood, founded in Egypt in 1928, is a pan-Arabic movement that favors creation of a Muslim state
that encompasses the entire Middle East. It has never given up that goal, but as it gains official power in Egypt,
winning parliamentary elections and now the presidency, it has indicated pragmatic willingness to accept the existence
of Israel.
In the Gaza Strip, tens of thousands of joyous Palestinians took to the streets across the territory after the result
was announced.
Gunmen fired automatic weapons in the air, and mosque loudspeakers reverberated with prayers. Some revelers
handed out candy on street corners.
The Arab Spring - Israel jittery after Brotherhood victory in Egypt
<iframe width="640" height="480" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/7SStUuUbc_U" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
JERUSALEM - The Muslim Brotherhood victory in Egyptian presidential elections, announced Sunday, has
raised fears in Israel that its strategic 1979 peace agreement with its southern neighbor could be in danger.
In contrast, in the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip, ecstatic residents flocked into the streets, fired guns in the air and
handed out candy in celebration.
Israel's peace agreement with Egypt, its first with an Arab country, is a cornerstone of Israeli security. The agreement
ended decades of hostilities, with to five wars and thousands of deaths.
While relations have never been warm, Egypt has upheld the deal, keeping its bordering Sinai peninsula largely
demilitarized, allowing the Israeli military to focus on other hostile borders with the Palestinians, Syria and Lebanon.
In a statement, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he respected the results of Egypt's democratic process
and hoped the peace agreement would remain intact.
With the Egyptian military still the ultimate power in Egypt, senior Israeli defense officials who maintain contacts with
Egypt said Sunday that they do not expect any immediate changes in relations.
The Muslim Brotherhood, founded in Egypt in 1928, is a pan-Arabic movement that favors creation of a Muslim state
that encompasses the entire Middle East. It has never given up that goal, but as it gains official power in Egypt,
winning parliamentary elections and now the presidency, it has indicated pragmatic willingness to accept the existence
of Israel.
In the Gaza Strip, tens of thousands of joyous Palestinians took to the streets across the territory after the result
was announced.
Gunmen fired automatic weapons in the air, and mosque loudspeakers reverberated with prayers. Some revelers
handed out candy on street corners.
