The Israeli Ambassador to Cairo David Govrin criticized the Egyptian government, saying that the Egyptian regime does not favor economic and civil cooperation with Israel for domestic political reasons, despite the fact that such cooperation would be in the interest of Egypt. According to Govrin, cooperation between the two countries has decreased significantly in recent years, because of the Arab Spring and the ensuing storming of the Israeli embassy in Cairo. Haaretz newspaper reported last month that the Israeli intelligence service had announced that Israel earlier had temporarily withdrawn its ambassador to Egypt , because of security concerns. The statement did not say when Govrin was withdrawn, but the British Telegraph said it was by the end of 2016. The Israeli Embassy in Cairo was fully reopened in September 2015, four years after protesters stormed the embassy in 2011 and Israeli diplomats were evacuated.

Source: Egypt Independent March 24, 2017 16:30 UTC