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The impending return of the Sinai also weighed heavily on Egypt's Mubarak. Government-controlled newspapers in Cairo excoriated Begin's action. But, as most analysts see it, Mubarak's fledgling regime could not survive a failure to regain the Sinai. Thus, Egyptian and Israeli negotiating teams will resume their talks on Jan. 10 concerning the second phase of the Camp David agreement, involving the basis of autonomy for Palestinian residents of the occupied West Bank and Gaza. Mubarak still intends to go ahead with a planned visit to Israel next February.
Clearly, Begin's gambit was as shrewd in its timing as it was reckless in its conception. None of the Arab nations, including Syria, is in a position to threaten Israel militarily. Nor did any country that supports Israel wish to do anything that might forestall the return of the Sinai, the most visible sign that life still remains in the Camp David process. But in tightening Israel's grip on the Golan Heights, the unpredictable Begin had once again flouted world opinion and undermined the already slim chances for a lasting peace in the Middle East.
—By George Russell. Reported by David Aikman/Jerusalem and William Stewart/Beirut