Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu cautioned on Wednesday that the massive anti-government uprising sweeping through Egypt could destabilize the region "for many years."
Netanyahu told the Knesset, Israel’s parliament, that there would be a battle in Egypt between those who favoured democracy and those who wanted to enforce an Iranian-style radical Islamist system.
"There are two worlds, two halves, two views -- that of the free world and that of the radical world," Netanyahu said. "Which one will prevail in Egypt? The answer is crucial to the future of Egypt, the future of the region and for us here in Israel."
The Israeli premier, one of the few international leaders to back Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, said he was sure that if the forces of the free world prevailed in Egypt, they would also uphold the peace with Israel.
"But my friends we are not there yet," Netanyahu said.
"It is possible that there will not be a resolution between these forces for a long time, there will be instability and uncertainty that continues for many years."
Since the protests began last week, Israel has stressed its focus is to preserve regional stability and its peaceful relations with Egypt, with which it signed a treaty in 1979.
Israeli Defence Minister Ehud Barak said on Wednesday that Mubarak's announced decision to step down when his term ends in September was not a matter for immediate Israeli military concern.
"Without doubt the Mubarak era is over, something is beginning that does not resemble what went before," he told Israel's Channel Two television.
"It's very hard to see what will be, it is part of a deep change which has far-ranging implications, but not immediate operational implications," he said.
Netanyahu had on Monday raised the spectre of an Iranian-style regime led by Islamic extremists arising out of the chaos sweeping through Egypt.
But Netanyahu has come under fire for failing to support the pro-democracy protests in Egypt. Israel has long prided itself on being the only democracy in the Middle East.
Netanyahu's speech appeared to be an attempt to deflect some of the criticism, telling parliament that "an Egypt that adopts democratic reforms is a source of hope to the world and to us."
But he also urged his critics to "be realistic and see the world as it is, not as we would wish it to be."
Egypt was the first Arab state to sign a peace treaty with Israel after four wars, initiating three decades of quiet on Israel's southern border.
Since then Cairo, under Mubarak, has played a key role in mediating between Israel and the rest of the Arab world and the Palestinians in particular.
Netanyahu has held frequent meetings with Mubarak since coming to office in 2009, more than any other world leader.