CAIRO (Reuters) - Egypt has rejected an Israeli proposal for the two countries to coordinate to re-open the Rafah crossing between Egypt's Sinai Peninsula and the Gaza Strip, and to manage its future operation, two Egyptian security sources said.

Egypt could consider downgrading relations with Israel if it presses on with a military operation in Gaza’s southernmost city of Rafah on the Egyptian border, an Egyptian official told CNN.

Israel continues to evade efforts to reach a ceasefire in its war with Hamas in Gaza, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, whose country has mediated in the conflict, told Arab leaders at a summit in Manama on Thursday.

Israel said on Tuesday that it was up to Egypt to reopen the Rafah crossing and allow humanitarian relief into the Gaza Strip, prompting Cairo to denounce what it described as "desperate attempts" to shift blame for the blockage of aid.

Gaza Egypt has told Israel it will not reopen the Rafah border crossing with Gaza while Israeli troops remain on the Gazan side, sources have told The National, as the row between the two countries deepens.