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Following are excerpts from a TV debate on Egypt-Qatar reconciliation, which aired on Dream2 TV on December 23, 2014:
Egyptian sociologist Saad Eddin Ibrahim: Relations between countries are like a huge ship sailing the ocean. In order to change direction, one has to do a big maneuver. Therefore, desires are one thing, and practical political measures, home and abroad, are another. When we talk about politics, we talk about "the art of the possible," as is taught in the first year of political science at university. So instead of going into all kinds of exaggerations and tales of bravado, we have to see what can be done in the short-term, in the medium-term, and in the long-term. That's it.
Moderator: Okay. Isn't it time to put an end to all the bravado, Dr. Samir Sabri?
Egyptian lawyer Samir Sabri: This is not bravado. This is patriotism. This is about the honor of the Egyptian people. My colleague says that if the ship wants to turn, it has to do a maneuver. Maybe it should also throw a few sailors overboard, so that it can turn more easily? This kind of political analysis is obsolete. This is no way to conduct a political discussion. The Egyptian people must regain its honor. We cannot chop and change in the way we talk about Qatar. We cannot heat up and cool down at the push of a button.
[…]
[Qatar's] most insignificant proposal was to temporarily halt the broadcasting of Al-Jazeera [Live Egypt TV] from Doha. That's nothing but an hors d'oeuvre. The Egyptian people has matured, and has realized that it should not swallow this kind of food. You bring me a few hors d'oeuvres and some salads, and say: Bon appêtit?! I want something real, something I can sink my teeth into.
Moderator: You want to go straight to the main course…
Samir Sabri: Absolutely. [Qatar] must turn in all the wanted men it is harboring, because they are wanted by Interpol. What are they doing with them? They send them to Turkey or London, and continue to finance them, or else they send them to my colleague's beloved America. It was Dr. Saad Eddin Ibrahim who reached an agreement with the U.S. that gave rise to those Muslim Brotherhood terrorists, who destroyed us for 13 months.
[…]
Dr. Saad Eddin Ibrahim is affiliated with the U.S…
Saad Eddin Ibrahim: And who are you affiliated with? Israel?
Samir Sabr: I am as Egyptian as they come, as Egyptian as Snail Fever.
Saad Eddin Ibrahim: You are a liar.
Samir Sabri: Who are you calling a liar?
Saad Eddin Ibrahim: You are a liar and a fraud.
[…]
Samir Sabri: Then the [Qataris] say: "Why should we apologize for those who were killed?" This is unheard of. We should bring the mother of a martyr, who was killed through Qatari financing, and ask her if she agrees with this reconciliation. None of us has been wounded – and my son hasn't died, and nor has my sister's husband. Nothing has happened to us. But we have seen soldiers killed because of Qatari financing. Qatar is financing Hamas and Sudan, and millions of dollars are flowing from Qatar to finance terrorism against Egypt, against Libya, and against Syria.
[…]
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