Oct 22 (Reuters) – Egypt advocates exploring “every opportunity” to resolve the Yemen conflict diplomatically, its foreign minister said, ahead of a parliamentary vote next week on authorising the armed forces to support Saudi Arabia against the Iran-aligned Houthis.
Any direct involvement of the Egyptian military, one of the region’s largest, would raise the stakes in the conflict between the kingdom and the Houthis, an increasingly destabilising front in the spreading US-Israeli war on Iran.
President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi called on Saturday for an urgent parliamentary session to authorise military involvement supporting the kingdom. After a closed session on Sunday, lawmakers postponed the vote until October 26 to allow more deliberation.
Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty and intelligence chief Hassan Rashad travelled to Riyadh on Wednesday to deliver a letter to Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman from Sisi, who said Egypt’s support would be limited to defending Saudi territory and borders rather than attacking Yemen.
What kind of support Egypt will ultimately provide remains unclear.
EGYPT HAS LIMITED ROLE IN SAUDI-LED YEMEN COALITION
Abdelatty said on Thursday that Egypt underlined the need to “explore every opportunity for the possibility of reaching political solutions” ensuring a full Houthi withdrawal from territory seized during the group’s advance in September near the Bab el-Mandeb Strait — a critical chokepoint at the Red Sea’s mouth and gateway to Egypt’s Suez Canal.
“So that we can move on the political path that we always emphasize, and also side by side in support of the defensive path for the kingdom,” Abdelatty told a press conference.
Clashes between the Houthis and the Saudi-led coalition backing Yemen’s internationally recognized government have intensified since the group’s push towards Bab el-Mandeb on the Red Sea further strained global oil supplies. The militia has since attacked Saudi airports and oil facilities.
Saudi Arabia, the world’s top oil exporter, is a vital strategic and economic partner for Egypt, providing billions in aid, central bank deposits and energy supplies under Sisi.
The war in Yemen, which has caused a humanitarian crisis, started in 2014 when the Houthis drove the internationally recognised government out of the northern capital, drawing Saudi-led military intervention.
Egypt joined the Saudi-led coalition in March 2015 mainly as a naval partner, sending warships to secure Red Sea shipping lanes while pledging air support. It also deployed around 800 ground troops but played only a limited combat role.
A US-brokered truce in 2022 largely halted attacks.
While Cairo has voiced support for Riyadh since the resumption of hostilities, it has avoided direct combat. It did not join the Mecca mutual defense pact linking Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Turkey, though it says membership remains under consideration.
The Saudi crown prince sought military assistance from the United States, but President Donald Trump did not agree to the US striking Houthis, three people familiar with the matter told Reuters in September. Washington told Riyadh that it would help with intelligence sharing and targeting, they added.
Yahya Ali al-Rai, speaker of the Houthi-run House of Representatives, warned on Saturday against Egyptian involvement, urging parliament to reject the proposal. “Should Egypt slide down this path, it would pose a grave threat to its own national security and internal stability,” he said.
(Reporting by Nayera Abdallah; editing by Philippa Fletcher)
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