Israel Matzav

Israel offered Mubarak asylum

I think he should have kept his mouth shut about it, but former Minister Binyamin Ben Eliezer is telling anyone who will listen that Israel offered asylum to Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak.

"I was in touch with him every day for 20-30 minutes during the [Egyptian] revolution. He didn't estimate properly the explosive nature of the rallies," Ben-Eliezer said.

"When I saw how it was heading, I said it's good that you are going to Sharm, because it's not far from Eilat, and we could take care of his health well in Eilat," the MK said, adding that Mubarak responded: "I fought for Egypt for 60 years and I will die on Egyptian soil."

Mubarak and his sons went on trial in Egypt on Wednesday.

Speaking about scenes broadcast today around the world showing Mubarak being wheeled into a Cairo courtroom on a hospital bed with his sons to stand trial for his role in the killing of protesters, Ben-Eliezer said, "It really pained me to see him the way he was today. He was the leader of the Arab world. The Middle East after Mubarak is a different Middle East, a worse region.

"His people who he fought for showed him their back," Ben Eliezer said. "He loves his people. I think he is a great Egyptian patriot. I hope he comes out of the trial alive. He is facing the pressure of the masses seeking revenge. But such a great leader deserves to be treated respectfully and not as the lowest criminal in a cage."

'Alive' is the key word there.

Haaretz adds:

"I met [Mubarak] in Sharm el-Sheikh and I told him that it was a short distance and that it might be a good chance to heal himself," Ben-Eliezer told Army Radio. "I am convinced that the Israel government would have accepted him but he declined [the offer] because he was a patriot."

I am sure all these headlines caused by Ben Eliezer will do wonders to enhance Mubarak's prospects of staying alive.

/Sarc

Labels: Binyamin Ben Eliezer, Egyptian regime change, Egyptian Revolution, Hosni Mubarak

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 12:17 AM