E.coli outbreak in Germany is the Jews fault, says Egyptian jihadist

It is time for the weekly episode of "what did the Jews do this time?"

They tainted Fenugreek seeds sent from Egypt to Germany in a deliberate attempt to kill innocent people and advance the international zionist conspiracy to take over the world(IZCTTOTW).

Absurd in the extreme, but another poke at Israel and Jews through playing the blame game.

From The Jerusalem Post July 20 by David E. Miller

In new Egypt, old conspiracies live on

When a European laboratory announced two weeks ago that an infected shipment of Egyptian fenugreek seeds was the source of an E. coli epidemic that killed 48 Germans and a Swede, the Egyptian agriculture minister didn’t apologize, nor did he call for an investigation into the matter.

The problem had nothing to do with Egypt, the minister, Ayman Abu-Hadid, told Egyptian press.

"Israel is waging a commercial war against Egyptian exports," he explained, and with that the case was closed.

Abu-Hadid isn’t the only minister in Egypt's post-revolutionary government to blame Israel for his country's woes. In June, Deputy Prime Minister Yehia El-Gamal told the Lebanese news site Al-Nashra that Israel was inciting sectarian strife between Muslims and Christians in the country.

“Israel understands that a strong Egypt is a danger for them and they want to make Egypt weak,” El-Gamal said. "Nothing breaks or weakens Egypt more than sectarian tension or clashes between Muslims and Christians.”

Conspiracy theories – with Israel fingered as the power behind the scenes – were common currency in the years Husni Mubarak ruled Egypt. Many Egyptians expected that with the transition to a more open, accountable and democratic society, the politicians and press would no longer need to point to cabals to explain away problems.

Egypt’s press today is freer than any time in the last half century, but the government remains in the hands of the Mubarak-era army leadership, and the cabinet, even after this week’s reshuffle, is made up of veteran politicians. And, even though Egypt and Israel are formally at peace, many Egyptians remain hostile to the Jewish state. Travel, commercial ties and cultural links are minimal.

"Conspiracy theories are part of the texture of our culture," Hani Henry, a psychology professor at the American University in Cairo, told The Media Line. "Even if we have a democratic government, the problem will not go away."

He says blaming Israel for Egypt’s problems could be both a cynical attempt by politicians to distract the public or an honest belief that Israel is constantly conniving against Egypt. In either case however, conspiratorial thinking was deeply ingrained in Egyptian thinking.

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