Egypt’s response to the conflict in Gaza is leading the conversation internationally this morning: A senior US lawmaker has backed up reports in the press earlier this week that alleged Israel had ignored warnings from Egypt about a planned attack by Hamas. “We know that Egypt has warned the Israelis three days prior that an event like this could happen,” head of the House Foreign Affairs Committee Michael McCaul told reporters yesterday. “A warning was given … I think the question was at what level.”

“Surprised by the indifference”: This comes two days after the Associated Press broke the news that Cairo had warned Tel Aviv. “We have warned them an explosion of the situation is coming, and very soon, and it would be big. But they underestimated such warnings,” the newswire quoted an unnamed Egyptian official as saying. Israeli news outlet Ynet also quoted an Egyptian intelligence source as saying that Egyptian officials had notified Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of a “terrible operation” but were left “surprised by the indifference” shown. Netanyahu has denied the reports calling them “absolutely false.” (Reuters | AFP | Financial Times | BBC | Times of Israel | The Telegraph)

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