CAIRO (Update) - Egypt on Saturday said it would not recall its ambassador to Israel and would limit itself to inviting the Israeli ambassador to Egypt for consultations at the Foreign Ministry in Cairo. Earlier on Saturday, the Egyptian Cabinet said it had recalled its ambassador to Israel over the deaths of five of its policemen reportedly killed by Israeli helicopters. The Cabinet had also stressed that its ambassador would not return to Tel Aviv until Israel gives a full report of the incident and officially apologizes to Cairo. "In response to what happened, Egypt will use all protective measures to strengthen its side of the border region with Israel and support the necessary forces able to deter the infiltration of claims for any illegal activity or elements outside of the law, as well as respond to any Israeli military activity toward the Egyptian border," a statement by the Egyptian Cabinet released on Saturday read. Hundreds of people gathered outside the Israeli Embassy in Cairo overnight to protest the killings, burning the Israeli flag and demanding that Egypt's ties with Israel be severed. The protests come after the Israeli military launched air strikes on the Gaza Strip in response to a series of attacks in southern Israel on Thursday in which 8 people died. Israel believes the attackers came from Gaza and entered Israel through Egypt's Sinai Desert. Gaza's Hamas government has denied any involvement. Earlier on Saturday, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas called for an emergency session of the UN Security Council to discuss the Israeli air stikes, in which at least 15 Palestinians were killed. The Arab League said it will hold an emergency meeting to discuss the strikes on Sunday. Several people were wounded on Friday after rockets fired from Gaza hit a synagogue and a school in the Israeli port city of Ashdod.
