The Train Hurtling Towards Us and the Abyss

In March 1979, I was invited to Cairo in my capacity as Deputy Director of the Leonard Davis Institute for International Relations of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. The occasion was to celebrate the peace treaty between Egypt and Israel

Our group was graciously received by Hamdy al-Gamal, Chief Editor of the State-owned newspaper, Al Ahram Al-Gamal had full support for the peace process.
Answering my question regarding those opposing the process, his response was chilling:

“The train has left the station. We must see that there is not another train pummeling towards us on the same tracks”

Sadly, both he and President Sadat died within a short period.

The current Chairman of Al Ahram, Abdel -Mohsen Salama, has written an op-ed on the pretext of denouncing the statement by an Israeli Minister who suggested dropping a nuclear bomb on Gaza. The Minister had been promptly suspended ,but Salama used this to refer to Israel as “a cancerous entity”, a term used by the Iranian leader. Salama called all the other Jews “-Neo-Nazis sucking the blood of ‘Palestinians'” ,describing Gaza as victims of terror unprecedented  in human history.”

Salama shows hatred for the entire State of Israel and its supporters.

He concludes his op-eds stating: “The ugly face of the Israel enemy is not new. It has been present for 75, years since the emergence of that of blood thirsty, accursed cancerous entity”.

Indeed , Al Ahram has sadly called on the train hurtling towards us and the abyss.