IDF Chief: The Egyptians will not attack us 

Amid swirling rumors of Egyptian military exercises in the Sinai Peninsula hinting at a potential attack on Israel, a senior Israeli Defense Forces officer has sought to calm rising anxieties along the country’s western border. Brigadier General Itamar Ben Haim, commander of Division 80, dismissed the possibility of an imminent Egyptian offensive, asserting that the Israeli military sees no credible threat in the near term.

“There is no scenario where the Egyptian army launches an attack in this area,” Ben Haim said in remarks reported by the Israeli news outlet Ynet earlier this week. “We are not preparing for it because we do not see it as existing in the immediate timeframe.” The statement came in response to unofficial reports of large-scale Egyptian troop maneuvers in Sinai, a region where Egypt’s military presence is restricted under a decades-old peace agreement with Israel.

The officer’s reassurance, however, has done little to quell the unease among some residents and activists near the border. Members of the Israel Border Communities Forum accused the military of downplaying a tangible danger. “The IDF is taking risks at our expense and ignoring the clear danger,” the group said in a statement, invoking the devastating surprise attack by Hamas on October 7, 2023, as a cautionary tale. “Before October 7, they didn’t listen to us, and the results were severe. We demand the withdrawal of Egyptian forces from northern Sinai.”

The Egyptian military exercises, documented in photographs released by Egypt’s armed forces, have fueled speculation about Cairo’s intentions. At a meeting with residents, one citizen, identified only as Neria, pressed Ben Haim on the lessons of October 7, pointing to Egypt’s rapid military buildup in recent years and questioning whether the IDF might be underestimating the gap between Egypt’s capabilities and its stated aims.

Adding to the tension, comments from other Israeli officials have painted a more wary picture. In recent weeks, the IDF Chief of Staff expressed concern that “the Egyptian threat could flip in an instant,” a stark contrast to Ben Haim’s measured optimism. Meanwhile, Israel’s ambassador to the United States, Yechiel Leiter, reportedly warned last month that Egypt was “violating the peace agreement and building offensive bases”—remarks captured in a video that was swiftly removed from the internet. The Israeli Foreign Ministry declined to comment on Leiter’s statements.

The 1979 peace treaty between Israel and Egypt, a cornerstone of regional stability, limits the number of troops and types of weaponry Egypt can deploy in Sinai. Ben Haim underscored the agreement as a key factor in the IDF’s assessment, saying, “The IDF prepares for what we consider reasonable. I do not foresee such an attack in the coming years, and if there is one—we will know how to prepare.”

The IDF Spokesperson’s office defended Ben Haim’s outreach, stating that the division commander had briefed residents on the military’s situational assessment and its efforts to counter all potential threats “according to priorities.”

Still, the disconnect between the military’s assurances and the fears of border communities highlights a lingering mistrust, sharpened by the memory of past intelligence failures. As Egypt’s military ambitions remain a subject of debate, the specter of an unexpected shift in the region’s delicate balance continues to loom large.