The Israelis will have been watching closely as Egyptian President Muhammad Mursi met with Gaza Hamas leader Isma'il Haniya in Cairo during an official visit on 26 July, reversing former president Husni Mubarak's refusal to recognize Hamas' takeover of Gaza from the Palestinian Authority (PA) in 2007. Ideally Hamas – which is an offshoot of Mr Mursi's Muslim Brotherhood – would probably like the Egyptian president to open the border with Gaza unconditionally, but the outcome of the Cairo meeting suggests that both sides are approaching the question of their future relationship cautiously.  A spokesman for Mr Mursi said that the subjects discussed included "lifting the siege and the suffering of the people in Gaza" and reconciliation between Hamas and the PA, while a Hamas statement said only that Mr Mursi had "promised to take measures that would ease the life of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip."

Charles Snow