By Menna Zaki, Aswat Masriya Diplomatic ties have been restored, bilateral coordination is “better than ever” as an Israeli minister said in April, and political relations continue to strengthen. So can Egypt and Israel have a “friendly” football match between their national teams, for instance? The idea was humoured in February by the Israeli embassy when it asked users to share their views and feelings about such a hypothetical sports game. Although the Israeli suggestion was met with rejection from the head of the Egyptian Football Association, who told Alarabiya TV station that the idea is “impossible,” the issue passed with no loud uproar from Egyptian public opinion. Analysts believe that the Egyptian people were once more zealous in their opposition to Israeli policies and to normalisation of bilateral relations. They sympathised with the Palestinians and the Palestinian cause vis-à-vis Israel, with which they engaged in three wars in the past century, in addition to the 1948 war. During the time of the second Intifada, which erupted in 2000, Egyptian youth were seen protesting against Israel on the streets and on university campuses amid calls for political and economic boycotts,…
