Reports have been circulating recently that members of the Abu Amara clan, one of the more prominent families in northern Gaza, killed two Hamas members this week in retaliation for the terrorist group’s assassination of a clan leader. This suggests that the jihadists might be beginning to lose their grip on power. But does that mean Israel is winning? Or is it failing to convert the IDF’s tactical successes into strategic gains, especially given the threat from Hizballah and other Iranian proxies? This is the subject of a deeply informed debate between Seth Frantzman, an Israeli journalist, and John Spencer, the U.S. Army’s leading expert on urban warfare. (Moderated by Bari Weiss. Audio, 69 minutes.)

Concluded in 1979, the Israeli-Egyptian peace treaty ended nearly 30 years of intermittent warfare, and proved one of the most enduring and beneficial products of Middle East diplomacy. But Egypt may not have been upholding its end of the bargain, write Jonathan Schanzer and Mariam Wahba:

Article III, subsection two of the peace agreement’s preamble explicitly requires both parties “to ensure that that acts or threats of belligerency, hostility, or violence do not originate from and are not committed from within its territory.” This clause also mandates both parties to hold accountable any perpetrators of such acts.

Recent Israeli operations along the Philadelphi Corridor, the narrow strip of land bordering Egypt and Gaza, have uncovered multiple tunnels and access points used by Hamas—some in plain sight of Egyptian guard towers. While it could be argued that Egypt has lacked the capacity to tackle this problem, it is equally plausible that it lacks the will. Either way, it’s a serious problem.

Was Egypt motivated by money, amidst a steep and protracted economic decline in recent years? Did Cairo get paid off by Hamas, or its wealthy patron, Qatar? Did the Iranians play a role? Was Egypt threatened with violence and unrest by the Sinai’s Bedouin Union of Tribes, who are the primary profiteers of smuggling, if it did not allow the tunnels to operate? Or did the Sisi regime take part in this operation because of an ideological hatred of Israel?