Have Egypt-Hamas relations reached point of no return?
Already-tenuous relations between Egypt and Hamas recently worsened with the release of a photo showing two of Hamas’ men who were abducted in Sinai a year ago in an Egyptian cell.
Hamas-Egypt relations are hanging by a thread amid the instability and tension between them, which some fear could result in a complete severing of ties.
The latest flare ignited Aug. 22 when Al Jazeera broadcast a photo of Hamas members who had been abducted a year ago by unknown armed men in the Sinai Peninsula after passing through the Rafah crossing.
Hamas said the men — Yasser Zanoun, Hussein al-Zabda, Abdullah Abu al-Jabin and Abdel Dayem Abu Labda — were traveling to Turkey to seek medical treatment or to pursue their studies. Egypt claimed the men were members of Hamas' military wing, Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, and were on their way to Iran for military training.
The photo shows two of the four men locked up, along with many others, at the headquarters of the Egyptian State Security Intelligence. In the photo, all the men were shown in their underwear and seemed to be in a miserable state. Some of them were emaciated.
