Articles and notes about Egypt.
Israel suspended the Rafah crossing without prior notice on Tuesday, November 3, 2026, stopping aid, fuel and commercial cargo from Egypt. The October 2025 agreement set the number of trucks but never a floor on what must enter, and the 33.4 percent that arrived since then measures what that permission is worth.
Sisi sought authorization to act “if requested” and “only in defense” of Saudi Arabia, and parliament postponed the vote to October 26, by roll call. On the same day, Yemen counted 53 dead at a recruit camp in al-Alam, the worst Houthi blow since the war returned.
Ethiopia’s army chief, Birhanu Jula, says the seven-group front cannot advance without supplies from Egypt and Sudan, and that Eritrea serves as a bridge. Cairo denies it; none of the accusations have been independently verified.
The war with Iran has doubled what Egypt pays for imported liquefied natural gas (LNG), and Cairo has been deferring cargoes into 2027 and burning fuel oil in its power plants to hold down the bill. The country asked suppliers to push five of its 15 November LNG cargoes into 2027, on top of about 15 already deferred since July. According to a government official cited by Asharq Bloomberg, the price of a single cargo has risen as much as 100% since September and climbed above US$100 million. Domestic gas output fell to 3.63 billion cubic feet per day in August, as older fields declined faster than new wells came online.
Egypt and Sudan reaffirmed in a joint statement on November 2, after the third round of their “2+2” consultation mechanism bringing foreign and irrigation ministers together in Cairo, that Ethiopia’s operation of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) without a binding agreement threatens downstream water security, according to Egyptian local media. The 1959 agreement invoked by the two countries allocated 55.5 billion cubic meters a year to Egypt and 18.5 billion to Sudan, while making no provision for Ethiopia, which was not a party to the treaty. The dam, built through domestic financing, has an installed generation capacity of approximately 5,150 megawatts and a reservoir capacity of about 74 billion cubic meters, making it Africa’s largest hydroelectric project.
Egypt's National Alliance for Civil Development Work (NACDW) launched its 14th humanitarian aid convoy for the Gaza Strip on Saturday, with more than 100 trucks and about 1,400 metric tons of relief supplies, according to Egypt Today and Xinhua.
Egypt’s foreign minister, Badr Abdelatty, held separate phone calls on Tuesday with his Saudi counterpart, Faisal bin Farhan, and with the United Arab Emirates (UAE) foreign minister, Abdullah bin Zayed, the Egyptian ministry said on Wednesday. The Egyptian and Saudi ministers agreed to continue coordination through the four-way mechanism, which includes Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Türkiye and Pakistan, according to the ministry.
The journalist Lina Attalah was released from custody after the payment of a three million Egyptian pound (US$53,400) fine, her lawyer, Hassan al-Azhari, said, according to Le Monde. An Egyptian court ordered the closure of Mada Masr and fined Attalah three million Egyptian pounds (US$53,400) for running a website without a license, Al Jazeera reported. During the release procedures, she learned that she had been sentenced in absentia in 2024 to one year in prison, on charges of publishing false news and running an unlicensed website.
Houthi official Mohammed Ali al-Houthi said Tuesday that the Egyptian parliament's decision to authorize military support for Saudi Arabia to defend against the group's attacks amounted to a declaration of war, according to Channel News Asia. The comment was part of a statement reacting to a Monday visit to Tehran by the Saudi defense minister, alongside Pakistan's army chief and Türkiye's intelligence chief, in a bid to de-escalate tensions in the Middle East war.
An Egyptian court convicted Mada Masr editor-in-chief Lina Attalah on Tuesday of running a website without a licence and ordered the independent outlet closed, according to Middle East Eye. Attalah was taken into custody after the verdict pending bail, Reuters reported in a text republished by KFGO.
Egypt’s Parliament authorized the military on Monday to provide support to help defend Saudi Arabia, if requested, according to Reuters, citing parliamentarians and local media. The decision responds to intensified attacks by Yemen’s Iran-allied Houthis on the Gulf kingdom. Parliament gave President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi the green light to take the steps necessary to defend Saudi Arabia, according to Bloomberg.
Turkey, Egypt, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia condemned the Houthi attacks on the kingdom, including strikes against civilians, infrastructure and commercial vessels in the Red Sea and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, according to TASS. The four countries called on the Houthis to immediately cease all military actions, threats and attacks and return to the political process. They also said the Israeli occupation is the main source of instability in the region and beyond.
Egypt’s Foreign Ministry said on Wednesday that the memorandum signed between Turkey and the government in eastern Libya led by Khalifa Haftar “is null and void, carries no legal effect, and that its ratification by the Libyan House of Representatives entails no legal consequences whatsoever for Egypt”. On Tuesday, Libya’s eastern government approved the agreement with Turkey establishing a maritime boundary between the two countries despite the presence of Greek islands, particularly Crete, between their coastlines. Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan rejected the criticism from Egypt, Greece and Israel.
Israel condemned on Wednesday a decision by the eastern-based parliament of divided Libya to ratify a memorandum of understanding with Turkey on maritime demarcations in the Mediterranean, the Times of Israel reported. Israel’s foreign ministry said the agreement infringes upon the sovereign rights of its close allies in the region and that, once again, Turkey is working to destabilize the eastern Mediterranean. Egypt reaffirmed that the memorandum “is null” and “possesses no legal effect”.
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi said Egypt’s military support for Saudi Arabia would be limited to defending the kingdom’s territory and borders and would not include an attack on Yemen, the presidency said on Wednesday, according to the Jerusalem Post. His comments came as Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty and intelligence chief Hassan Rashad met Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Riyadh, Saudi state news agency SPA reported.
Egypt’s Parliament postponed to October 26 a vote on authorising the armed forces to support Saudi Arabia, the House of Representatives said on Monday, according to Al Jazeera. Parliament has been tasked with authorising President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi to approve any request from Saudi Arabia for defence assistance.
Egyptian construction firms surveyed sites in the ruins of the southern Gaza Strip for a housing project dubbed “Green Rafah”, Egyptian sources told Middle East Eye. The proposed neighbourhood would initially house around 20,000 Palestinians and be supervised by a multinational force expected to be deployed in several parts of the Gaza Strip under the Sharm el-Sheikh peace agreement.
Egypt’s parliament postponed to October 26 a vote on authorizing potential military support to help defend Saudi Arabia, as regional security tensions rise, according to TRT World. The one-week postponement leaves the decision pending as lawmakers prepare to resume deliberations later this month.
Egypt’s presidency said the country is ready to give Saudi Arabia all the support it needs to defend its security and stability, the Korea Herald reported. Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi requested an urgent parliament session to authorize the military, one of the Arab world’s largest, to help defend its Gulf ally if the kingdom requests support. The move comes as Yemen’s Houthis step up their attacks on the kingdom.
The foreign ministers of Iran, Abbas Araghchi, and of Egypt, Badr Abdelatty, held a telephone conversation on Sunday evening, according to Mehr News. In the call, they reviewed the latest regional developments and discussed diplomatic efforts and initiatives aimed at reducing tensions and maintaining stability in the region.
President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi called for an emergency parliamentary session on Saturday to approve any Saudi requests for defense assistance if Egypt receives one from Riyadh, according to Ahram Online. Sisi said his country is prepared to take any measures requested by Saudi Arabia to defend the kingdom’s security and sovereignty, according to state-run Nile TV.
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi said his country is prepared to take any measures requested by Saudi Arabia to defend the kingdom’s security and sovereignty, according to the state-run Nile TV, in a Xinhua report. Sisi said the measure requires parliamentary approval and called on parliament to convene an emergency session to authorize action should it be asked to intervene: “I am not talking about waging war against anyone; I am speaking strictly in terms of defense”.
Iranian Foreign Minister Seyyed Abbas Araghchi met with his Egyptian counterpart, Badr Abdelatty, in Baghdad on Saturday, on the sidelines of the Council of Foreign Ministers’ meeting of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), according to the Iranian agency Mehr News.
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi said on Saturday that his presidential term ends in 2030 and that the question of his departure from office is “settled and will not be discussed”, according to Middle East Eye.
Cairo will host on Wednesday and Thursday talks involving Palestinian groups, including the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO), Palestinian Islamic Jihad and Hamas, on internal divisions, unity and elections, according to sources who spoke to Al Jazeera, in text republished by Middle East Eye. Fatah spokesman Abdel Fattah Dawla told Anadolu that the meetings would prepare for broader dialogue and build consensus among the factions, in text republished by Middle East Eye.
Badr Abdelatty of Egypt urged Iran's Abbas Araghchi to help ease regional tensions and demanded that attacks on Saudi Arabia stop immediately, according to Middle East Eye. Egypt's Foreign Ministry said Abdelatty described the attacks as “unacceptable” and said there was “no justification for these attacks”. Abdelatty also urged Tehran and Washington to resume talks, saying diplomacy was the only route to settling their disputes and averting further instability.
An air strike killed at least 72 civilians who had been prospecting for gold in a border region of Sudan, the BBC reported. The attack occurred hundreds of miles from the front lines of Sudan’s devastating civil war, according to The New York Times. The Khartoum-based rights group Emergency Lawyers accused the Egyptian military of targeting civilian miners in the North Wadi area of Jabal al-Uqaydat, according to Al Jazeera.
72 civilian miners died in a Saturday airstrike on the Egypt-Sudan border, according to preliminary information from the Emergency Lawyers organisation, cited by AFP, in a text republished by France24, with the casualty count still being verified. The organisation blamed the Egyptian Air Force for the attack, and AFP said it could not independently confirm the account.
The Emergency Lawyers group accused the Egyptian air force of a strike on Saturday that killed 72 civilian miners at a gold mine on the Sudan-Egypt border, according to the group's preliminary information, which said documentation and verification efforts were ongoing. Sudan Tribune reported that at least five strikes hit the Al-Uqaydat mine, near the Al-Ansari trading market in River Nile state, according to Mirghani Malik, an artisanal miner in the area. The outlet said it could not independently verify the casualty toll or identify the aircraft.
The US State Department notified Congress last week that it approved the sale of more than $2bn in US weapons systems to Egypt, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates, according to Middle East Eye. Egypt will buy more than 2,000 FGM-148 Javelin anti-tank missiles and up to 200 launchers, for about $832m. The priciest purchase in the package is the UAE’s, for up to 10,000 APKWS-II laser-guided kits, at about $1.04bn; Kuwait will buy services and parts for Patriot batteries for $400m.
The US State Department approved the sale of more than $2bn in weapons systems to Egypt, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), notifying Congress last week, according to Middle East Eye. The priciest purchase among the tranche was for the UAE: up to 10,000 Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System-II (APKWS-II) kits, which turn unguided rockets into precision munitions, for about $1.04bn. Egypt was cleared to buy more than 2,000 FGM-148 Javelin anti-tank missiles and up to 200 Javelin launch units, for about $832m.
In an interview with the Haredi site Hashtiblach on Monday, Israeli minister Bezalel Smotrich said Israel would destroy Sinai if Egypt attacked Israel, according to The Jerusalem Post. Egyptian presenters responded with threats against Tel Aviv, Ben-Gurion Airport and Netanyahu. Journalist Ahmed Moussa said all 120 million Egyptians would die defending Egypt. There was no immediate official response from the Egyptian authorities, only reactions from journalists, lawmakers and influencers close to the authorities, according to the Middle East Monitor.
US envoy Massad Boulos met on Saturday, October 4, with Sudanese General Abdel-Fattah Burhan at a luncheon hosted by the Egyptian president, according to the AP in a text republished by The Hindu, and said the efforts aim to restore security and stability and begin reconstruction and development through an inclusive Sudanese-owned national dialogue.
Egypt, Eritrea, Somalia and Sudan called for political and peaceful solutions amid escalating conflicts across the region, according to Al Jazeera, in a joint declaration on Sunday following a meeting in New Alamein City in Egypt; the declaration also said control of the Red Sea should remain with the coastal states.
Ethiopian federal forces were in full control of Mekelle, the Tigray rebels' regional capital, according to a local journalist, on Sunday, as Ethiopia's regional rivals gathered in Egypt. The presidents of Egypt, Somalia, Sudan and Eritrea, all with difficult relations with Ethiopia, were set to meet in Alamein on Sunday to discuss the conflict, according to AFP. The People's Liberation Front of Tigray (TPLF) said it had temporarily moved out of Mekelle to operate from somewhere else, according to Al Jazeera.
A court in Rome sentenced three Egyptian security officials to 10 years over the abduction of Giulio Regeni, according to The Independent. Those convicted are Major Magdi Ibrahim Abdelal Sharif, for whom prosecutors had sought a life sentence, and Colonels Uhsam Helmi and Athar Kamel Mohamed; the fourth defendant, General Tariq Sabir, was acquitted, according to ANSA. Regeni was abducted on 25 January 2016 while researching Egypt’s independent trade unions for his PhD at Cambridge, according to the BBC.
An Italian court convicted three Egyptian security officials over the kidnapping of student Giulio Regeni, according to Al Jazeera. On Monday, the three were sentenced to 10 years in prison for aggravated kidnapping and a fourth defendant was acquitted. A judge said Major Magdi Sharif, from Egypt's General Intelligence, police Colonel Hisham Helmy and Colonel Ather Kamal were guilty of the aggravated kidnapping of Regeni, according to Reuters, in a text republished by Internazionale.
Fighting between the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) and Ethiopia’s federal government, led by Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, resumed on Wednesday, raising fears of a return to the 2020-2022 civil war, in which an estimated 600,000 people died. Sudan’s military denied in a statement on Sunday the accusations by Ethiopia’s army commander that Sudan and Egypt back armed groups fighting Ethiopian troops in the north of the country, calling them “baseless”, according to Al Jazeera.
Ethiopia’s army chief accused Egypt and Sudan of supporting a new alliance of armed groups trying to remove Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, according to Euronews. Marshal Birhanu Jula said that neither Eritrea nor the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) could achieve anything alone without external support, according to France 24. The accusation comes as fighting has resumed in northern Ethiopia, according to Euronews.
The foreign ministers of Turkey, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan said in a joint statement on Tuesday, 22 September 2026 that they affirmed Saudi Arabia’s right to defend itself in line with international law and stressed the need to preserve the safety of navigation in the region, amid escalating attacks by Yemen’s Houthis, as reported by Reuters and published by Middle East Eye and the Times of India. The four ministers met on the sidelines of the United Nations (UN) General Assembly in New York, voiced “deep concern” over the conflicts in the region, said dialogue and diplomacy were the only path to a sustainable solution and backed Yemen’s government in its efforts towards stability and peace. The Mecca Joint Defence Agreement, signed on 7 August 2026 by Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan, states that an armed attack against any one of the three countries will be treated as an attack against all, according to the BBC.