There is a phrase in Arabic that loosely translates as “death and destruction,” but is significantly more subtle and expressive than the terse wording in English. It implies that loss of life is only a beginning and that the tragedy will be compounded by economic devastation — in essence, that death is just the start of one’s troubles. It is an apt metaphor for the conflict in Gaza. Apart from the huge death toll and an Israeli bombardment that has left less than 8% of Gaza’s housing units and 30% of all structures still standing, the economic devastation has lapped over the borders, most notably Egypt’s, which is currently dealing with the resulting economic fallout and sustained diplomatic pressure.
Pressuring Egypt over Gaza will not work and is not in the US interest | Middle East Institute
