Two recent instances in Egypt dismissed the peace treaty signed with Israel in order to protect Egyptian national security or censure individuals with moderate views towards the Jewish state.
Egyptian courts revoked the citizenship of Egyptians that married Israelis, citing the children as potential security risks. Because the offspring of the couple would carry Israeli citizenship, the Israeli government would mandate that they serve in the IDF due to compulsory enlistment requirements. Defending the ruling, one of the judges stated,
“Because the children of such mixed couples can have dual citizenship, Egyptian and Israeli, there is a danger that these Egyptian children will be drafted into the Israel Defense Forces, and this means that there is a danger to Egyptian national security.”
Many Egyptian men work in Israel and marry an Israeli women. While some are assuredly Jewish, many are likely Israeli-Arabs or Palestinian that obtain Israeli citizenship by default if they live in Jerusalem.
Similarly, many Egyptians began calling for the ouster of Al-Azhar University President Sheikh Sayed Tantawi for remaining at a conference also attended by Israeli President Shimon Peres. Critics claim that Tantawi should have left alongside the Iranian delegation. The Egyptian Minister of Religious Affairs defended Tantawi by noting that the accused refused to shake hands with Peres or any rabbis attending the conference. Tantawi previously received criticism for shaking Peres’ hands at a different conference in New York.