Last minute diplomatic efforts by Washington defused a potentially disastrous situation and helped to resolve the Egyptian-Israeli crisis before their 1979 peace accord was overturned. A compromise was reached when Cairo agreeing not to recall its ambassador from Israel, and the Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak issued a public apology for the deaths of the three Egyptian policemen. Relations soured when three Egyptian policemen were killed in clashes between Israeli troops and Palestinian terrorists on the Eilat road. Israel agreed to a joint investigation with Egypt into the killings and to renegotiate terms on the posting of Egyptian forces in eastern Sinai.

Nonetheless, the prospects of cross border raids have been raised across the region to deal with extremists and nationalistic movements. This trend poses dangerous consequences for the nation-state system.

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The US should contemplate ways to re-supply forces in Afghanistan in case Pakistan blocks the supply route via that country, President Obama’s nominee to head US Transportation Command said Thursday during a briefing to the Senate Armed Services Committee.

Air Force General William Fraser III further elaborated that around 35% of the cargo for American troops travels through Pakistan while the rest comes via the northern supply corridors or airlift. It was previously believed that up to 80% of these supplies were coming via Pakistan. As US Pakistan relations continue to deteriorate, the Transportation Command, along with the US Central Command, is working to prevent any disruptions in supply if that route is blocked by Pakistan, he added.

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Afghan forces’ takeover of security responsibilities will fail in Helmand without securing the porous Pak-Afghan border, the provincial governor has cautioned as British troops officially handover control. Gulab Mangal urged NATO to prevent Taliban infiltration from Pakistan and said it risked disrupting the withdrawal of foreign forces. Mangal’s remarks came as Afghan troops and police officially took the security responsibility for provincial capital Lashkar Gah where British troops have been deployed since 2006.

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Turkey’s deputy prime minister and government spokesman Bulent Arinc made it clear on Monday that his country could conduct a cross-border operation against the outlawed Kurdish Workers’ Party (PKK) if required. He made the remarks during a news conference following a cabinet meeting in Ankara. Arinc also said the cabinet has instructed the Interior Ministry to investigate the PKK assault that left 13 troops dead on Thursday in the town of Silvan in southeastern Turkey.

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Context

Tensions between Kabul and Islamabad flared up Wednesday after Pakistani PM Gillani phoned Afghan President Karzai to express “serious concerns” over cross-border attacks and demand a quick end to such raids. The move comes as hundreds of Afghan militants launched fresh attacks on Wednesday in the Upper Dir area along the Pak-Afghan border. Meanwhile, Afghan officials said at least 78 people were killed on their side of the border on the same day in clashes between security forces and the Taliban in the province of Nuristan. Provincial Governor Jamaludin Badar said that the attackers came from Chitral in Pakistan. Both governments have been blaming one another for not containing the militants. Kabul also accuses Islamabad of launching rockets into its territory.

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