Convicted spy Azzam returned to Israel to a hero’s welcome.

CAIRO, December 6 (IslamOnline.net & News Agencies) – Despite the Egyptian official denial of any deals behind the release of six Egyptian students detained in Israel and convicted Israeli spy Azzam Azzam, opposition figures and people lambasted what they saw as “wavering on national honor.”

Media reports in Israel and the West hailed the “prisoner exchange” as a boost to Egyptian-Israeli relations, especially as it coincided with an announcement on setting up four free-trade zones under an agreement to be signed on December 14 among Israel , the United States and Egypt.

This will give certain Egyptian and Israeli goods duty-free entry to the American market, reported Agence France-Presse (AFP).

Azzam Azzam, who was jailed in September 1997 for 15 years for spying, was handed over to Israeli authorities Sunday, December 5, at the Taba border crossing, triggering scenes of joy in his home village in northern Israel .

Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon promptly rang Azzam to welcome him home before personally thanking Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak.

“This is a happy moment in the history of the state of Israel , a moment that we have waited for a long time,” said Sharon .

Although Israel had lobbied for Azzam's release ever since his arrest, Egypt consistently refused to “interfere” in the judicial process.

Israeli officials confirmed the six Egyptian student -- Mustafa Abu Deif Ali, Mohammed Yusri Hussein Salem, Mahmud Gamal Ezzat Ali, Mustafa Mahmud Yussef Mohammed, Mohammed Maher Sayed Ahmed and Emad Sayed Ahmed Tuhami -- had been freed.

All six were arrested in August on suspicion of trying to kidnap and assassinate Israeli soldiers.

Furious Egyptians

As Azzam and his relative celebrated the release, the scene in Egypt was completely different.

Editor-in-Chief of the independent weekly Al-Osbou, Mustafa Bakri, told Aljazeera news channel the deal “was a shame.”

“How could we be so lenient with our national rights. I think releasing the six students in return for the killing of three border policemen in Rafah could have been the least Israel must have offered,” he said.

An Israeli tanks killed on November 18 three Egyptian border policemen patrolling the Egyptian part of Rafah.

Cairo lodged a formal complaint after Israel argued the army killed the policemen by “mistake”, threatening to plunge their delicate diplomatic ties into crisis mode.

Sharon is said to have defused the row by calling Mubarak to express “deep sorrow” over the incident and promised to keep him abreast of an official investigation.

On Sunday, the swap deal drew criticism from opposition parties in Egypt and even from the father of one of the freed students.

“Nothing can justify this gift offered to Israel when this state is increasing its aggression against the Palestinians and Arabs,” Tagamoo party chief Hussein Abdel Razek told AFP.

The same message was expressed by officials of most other political parties, media persons, university professors and citizens.

“The government continues to sell dirty cheaply the national honor," sociology professor Safeya Suleiman told AFP.

No Comparison

The Egyptian students were yet to make it home.

While families of the six students were happy after the release of their sons, they insisted there was no comparison between the case of their sons and that of the Israeli spy.

“These are just youth who acted out of personal fury at what they watch daily of Israeli aggressions against the Palestinians,” Youssri Hassan Salem, one of the parents, told Aljazeera Monday.

“Whether their action is right or wrong, it could never be compared to the case of a convicted spy,” he averred.

Egyptian presidential spokesman Maged Abdel Fattah had insisted Sunday there was deal.

“There was no deal concerning this issue,” he told journalists, arguing that “judicial procedures were followed in both cases separately.”

On the issue of the Egyptian ambassador, withdrawn to protest incessant Israeli aggressions against Palestinians and stalemate in the peacemaking drive, the spokesman said the issue is “linked to progress in the peace process.”

Economic Deal

According to media reports, however, the prisoner swap could just be the tip of the iceberg of other deals between Israel and Egypt , under Washington ’s blessing and mediation.

The three countries will ink on December 14 an agreement on setting up four free-trade zones, Sharon ’s office declared Monday.

Under the accord, goods from the zones can enter the US without customs tariffs, provided that 35 percent of the product results from cooperation between Israel and Egyptian companies, and that Israel 's input is a minimum eight percent.

“It is the most important economic breakthrough since the signing of the peace treaty between Israel and Egypt at the end of the 1970s,” a senior official told AFP.

Israel and Jordan , the only other Arab country to have a peace treaty with Israel, already have a similar deal with the United States .

The agreement should boost commercial links between Israel and Egypt, which at present total 44 million dollars a year.

Oded Tirah, president of the Israeli Manufacturers Association, estimates that the free-trade deal could see trade soar rapidly to around 70 million dollars a year.