The Huge Significance of Two Small Red Sea Islands

Last week the Egyptian government announced that it was handing over sovereignty of two small, uninhabited islands in the Red Sea, Tiran and Snafir, to Saudi Arabia, and is planning, together with the Saudis, to build a bridge between the two countries.

 

In exchange, according to the reports, the kingdom and Saudi firms are expected, among other things to:

• Invest over $20 billion in Egypt.
• Provide about $1.5 billion for developing northern Sinai.
• Fund the causeway connecting Sharm el-Sheikh and Saudi Arabia,
• Supply Egypt’s energy needs with a long-term loan with 2 percent interest.

 Since the 1800s, these islands have changed ownership several times, leaving the current status in a bit of a grey area.

 

In 1950, the Saudi government handed over both islands to Egypt because at the time Egypt had the military capability to “protect” them from Israel.

 

Both islands, at the mouth of the Gulf of Elat Aqaba have a combined area of only 44 square miles and are 5 miles from Egypt and Saudi Arabia. Both islands are arid and uncultivated with yet unexplored possible natural resources.

 

The big significance Tiran has is its strategic position - it forms the narrowest section of the Straits of Tiran, which is the only passage from the ports of Elat in Israel, and Aqaba in Jordan to the Indian Ocean and South Asian Markets.

 

This strategic significance played a disastrous role for Egypt when on May 22, 1967 president Gamal Abdel Nasser ordered the blockade of the Straits of Tiran.

 

Perceiving this as an act of war; Israel launched attacks on Egypt, Jordan, and Syria, starting the Six Day War. This led to the loss of Arab land to Israel and the death of some 20,000 Arab soldiers.

 

Egypt regained the Sinai Peninsula, including the two Islands, after the 1973 Yom Kippur war.

Tiran is included as part of the 1979 “Camp David” peace treaty, signed in Washington by Egypt and Israel that guarantees freedom of Israeli shipping through the Straits of Tiran.

 

Both islands are uninhabited and only Tiran has a handful of international peace keeping troops, mostly American and Egyptian soldiers. Many beaches on Tiran are mined.

 

The Saudi government now has to agree to abide by the same Camp David Accords with regards to guaranteeing safe passage for Israeli shipping through the Straits of Tiran.

 

Egypt, it seems, made an excellent deal: It receives an outstanding economic lifeline in exchange for territories that it probably does not technically own.

 

Israel was told in advance about the Saudi - Egyptian deal, and gave its approval, sort of. Israel’s concerns are mainly the fact that the current instability in the Saudi kingdom could lead to an overthrow of the somewhat fragile regime and the establishment of a hostile government (to both Israel and the US) of either radical Islamist extremists like ISIS, or a pro-Iran group. Either way would create the risk of the Straits of Tiran being again blocked to Israeli commercial and military shipping.

 

Another concern is the planned bridge or causeway. Obviously it would be highly beneficial to the Egyptians and Saudis, but what threats will it pose down the road, to Israeli, Jordanian and American ships sailing beneath it?

 

All told, if the various agreements stand the test of time, at least at the moment it looks like a good deal. If nothing else, it brings together the interests, and reinforces relations, between the four moderate, anti-Iran and anti-Islamic terrorism powers in the Middle East: Egypt, Saudi Arabia (assuming the new 9/11 disclosures don’t shake the boat too much...), Jordan and Israel.

 

And that makes Tiran and Snafir hugely significant.

Good News From Israel

Several readers have emailed me asking why my columns always deal with the more serious aspects of news from the Middle East. Well, that’s because I usually analyze the day to day current events in Israel and the region, and how they impact the U.S. in general, and U.S. – Israel relations in particular.

But I have been neglecting the positive, uplifting and world-changing news that comes out of Israel every day.

So this week’s column is dedicated exclusively to good news and developments from Israel.

These recent articles come from two resources: israel21c.org and nocamels.com, where you can find more about these inventions, together with a wealth of information on how Israel is constantly making the world better, safer and healthier.

1.   Novel wound clot bandages can stop severe bleeding within minutes.

Developed by nano-materials specialist Dr. Shani Eliyahu-Gross of Core Scientific Creations, WoundClot is composed of a highly absorbent gauze made from regenerated cellulose (what plant cell walls are made of). When applied to a wound, this single-use, sterile bandage turns into a gel-state membrane, forming a stable membrane with the platelets (clotting blood cells) from the wound. By enhancing the natural process of coagulation, WoundClot stops hemorrhaging within minutes. Perhaps more importantly, the membrane lasts up for up to 24 hours. (nocamels.com)

2.   Israeli Tech Puts 3D Holographic Heart In The Doctor’s Hand To Save Lives

Real View has developed what is probably the most advanced 3D interactive visualization system. Their holographic system allows physicians to work with the patient’s true 3D anatomy appearing as precise volumetric holograms floating in mid-air.  (nocamels.com)

3.   China signs 5-year agreement with Galilee institute

The Galilee International Management Institute has signed a five-year cooperation agreement with the Chinese government on innovations in agriculture. The Institute offers advanced seminars to professionals from over 170 transitional and industrialized countries, in an attempt to promote cooperation on global and regional levels.   Over the last 10 years, the Galilee International Management Institute (GIMI) has trained over 900 Chinese officials.  The new agreements call for GIMI to train approximately 130 Chinese — mainly in the fields of agriculture, water management and technological innovation — each year for the five years. (israel21c.org)

4.   A single blood test could detect multiple diseases

An Israeli-led international team of researchers has proof of concept for a single blood test that can detect multiple conditions, including diabetes, cancer, traumatic injury and neurodegeneration, in a highly sensitive and specific manner.

The novel method, tested on 320 patients and control groups, zeroes in on patterns of circulating DNA that is released by dying cells and traces it to specific types of tissue. (israel21c.org)

5.   California to grow rice sustainably with Israeli water-tech

The first sustainable farming initiative leveraging Israel’s pioneering research and innovation in water technology will begin this spring at Conaway Ranch in Woodland, California. The goal of the novel project is to reduce the vast amount of water ordinarily used in growing rice.

“We couldn’t ask for better partners: Ben-Gurion University of the Negev’s Zuckerberg Institute for Water Research and Netafim USA, the world’s leading drip-irrigation manufacturer, both of which have experience growing rice in arid regions,” said Kyriakos Tsakopoulos, president and CEO of Conaway Preservation Group, owner of the 17,000-acre Conaway Ranch in north-central California, upon announcing the project at the AIPAC Policy Conference in Washington, D.C. on March 20, adding: “This effort could serve as a model for other farms and potentially save hundreds of thousands of acre-feet of water in California if widely adopted”. (Israel21c.org)

6.   Breakthrough Blood Test For Alzheimer’s Disease To Undergo Clinical Trials

In order to accurately diagnose Alzheimer’s disease, medical professionals must conduct a long series of tests to assess a patient’s memory impairment, cognitive skills, functional abilities, and behavioral changes. The process also includes costly brain imagining scans and, in some cases, invasive cerebral spinal fluid tests to rule out other diseases.

Now, a new discovery by a team of Israeli and American researchers seeks to effectively screen and diagnose Alzheimer’s using a blood test. The new study, published in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease, proposes a new biomarker for cognitive aging and Alzheimer’s disease: The activity-dependent neuro-protective protein (ADNP), whose levels can be easily monitored in routine blood tests. The study also found that higher ADNP levels tested in the blood correlate with higher IQ in healthy older adults. The researchers now plan to move forward into clinical trials in order to create a pre-Alzheimer’s test that will help to tailor potential preventative treatments (nocamels.com).

And these are just a few examples.

 It’s important to always remember that with all the bad news that comes out of that region, Israel is fulfilling its destiny as not only the Jewish Nation State and homeland, but as a constant light to all the nations of the world.

There is always good news from Israel, and I promise to emphasize it more.