By Mati Cohen

An Arab source said that there is now a chance to prevent Egypt from joining the Turkish Iranian Pakistani axis, since the Egyptian interest in a possible agreement with Israel regarding the Gaza Strip outweighs the Egyptian interest in entering as a supporting player in the non-Arab Islamic axis that Turkey and Iran are establishing with Pakistan. The source said that there are differences of opinion between Egypt and Turkey regarding the Muslim Brotherhood: Turkey provides shelter to the Muslim Brotherhood, who are opponents of the regime in Egypt, and they even operate Islamic media outlets in the country that appeal to the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt, increasing internal tension in Cairo. The Arab Israeli axis, according to the Palestinian plan, will include Lebanon, Syria, The United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Jordan, the Palestinians, and even Saudi Arabia, which recently signed a defence alliance with Turkey and Pakistan. According to the Arab source, the Palestinians are convinced that there is still a chance to attract Saudi Arabia to the Arab axis, if there is significant progress in negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians (see today in the main story Ramallah's proposal to Israel to disarm Hamas in the Gaza Strip, through the militias operated by the PA in Gaza, including the Al-Shabaab militia). The Palestinian strategic choice expresses the Palestinians' desire to establish a democratic state and a civil society; the choice for a civil society is now common to most Arab countries, compared to the choice for a religious state under Sharia law, which is common to the countries of the Islamic axis, Turkey, Iran, and Pakistan.