Egypt announced on Saturday that it’s recalling its ambassador from Israel following the shooting deaths of five Egyptian security forces in a border incident earlier in the week.

The five officers were caught up in a firefight between Israeli troops and suspected Palestinian militants on Thursday. In a statement, the Egyptian cabinet said ambassador Yasser Reda would be withdrawn until Israel concludes its investigation into the deaths.

It was the first time in nearly 11 years that Egypt decided to withdraw its ambassador from Israel. The last time was in November 2000 when the Egyptians protested what they called excessive use of violence during the second Palestinian uprising.

Israel officials were hunting for gunmen who attacked buses near the Israeli Red Sea resort of Eilat. The ambush left eight Israelis dead and dozens injured and was blamed on militants who entered Israel through the Sinai peninsula, which borders both Israel and the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip.

Egypt holds Israel ‘politically and legally responsible’

A statement released by the Egyptian cabinet said Egypt holds Israel “politically and legally responsible” for the border shootings that followed, adding that what happened was in violation of the 1979 Egyptian-Israeli peace treaty.

The Israeli military has promised to hold an investigation into the incident.

“No one had any intention to harm Egyptian security personnel,” Amos Gilad, a senior Israeli Defence Ministry official who works closely with Egypt, told Israel Radio. “The question is what happened in the field and that is what is being investigated.”

The cabinet statement said Egypt would send reinforcements to protect its borders and “respond to any Israeli military activity at the Egyptian borders.”

The decision to withdraw Reda was announced as thousands of protesters gathered outside the Israeli Embassy in Cairo for a second day, demanding the expulsion of the Israeli envoy. A Palestinian flag was unfurled at the site, and some of the demonstrators threw firecrackers at the building.

Some protesters removed concrete blocks from the entrance of a side street leading to the embassy while others banged on a metal fence with bars, but no violence was reported.

Source: CBC.ca