US News

Arab activist on peace mission to Israel

JERUSALEM — An Egyptian activist is taking an unusual step — visiting Israel on a peace mission.

Maikel Nabil says that the Middle East has “had enough violence and confrontation.”

Israel and Egypt signed a peace treaty in 1979, but relations are cool, and visits like this are rare.

The 26-year-old blogger says he came to help mend ties strained further after the ouster of longtime Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak last year. Egypt’s dominant Muslim Brotherhood is hostile to Israel.

The trip has drawn criticism from fellow activists sympathetic to the Palestinians.