CAIRO — Egypt’s parliament on Monday delayed until October 26 a vote on authorizing the country’s armed forces to support Saudi Arabia if it requests help against Yemen’s Houthi rebels, extending a debate over how deeply Egypt should be drawn into the conflict.
Members of the House of Representatives said the chamber adjourned a second closed-door session on Monday that had been called to discuss President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi’s request for authority to take measures “to support the kingdom” following recent Houthi attacks on Saudi oil and other infrastructure, Reuters reported.
Under Egypt’s constitution, a two-thirds parliamentary majority is required to approve sending the armed forces on a combat mission beyond the country’s borders, after consultation with the National Defence Council, which approved the request on Sunday.
On Saturday, el-Sisi said Egypt would take “any measure” necessary to protect Gulf allies — a sharper public commitment after Houthi strikes hit Saudi airports and oil facilities. But he stressed that Egypt’s role would be defensive. “We’re talking only about defence,” he said.
The vote has drawn scrutiny at home. The opposition Egyptian Social Democratic Party, which holds nearly a dozen seats in parliament, said on Sunday it had instructed its lawmakers to abstain, saying parliament had not received sufficient information about the proposed mission’s “objectives, duration, cost, or the risks to Egyptian troops.”
The party said Egypt should avoid an open-ended military commitment and preserve room for diplomacy, citing the country’s economic pressures and the risks to Red Sea shipping and Suez Canal revenue. Two members of parliament said most of the party’s lawmakers personally supported the measure, according to Reuters.
The Grand Imam of al-Azhar, Ahmed al-Tayyeb, called on Sunday for an urgent mediation effort by Arab and Muslim leaders to contain the conflict and avert further bloodshed.
The debate underscores Cairo’s close security and financial ties with Riyadh. Saudi Arabia holds a $5.3 billion deposit at Egypt’s central bank that comes due this month, along with $267.39 million in interest, according to central bank data.
The Houthi attacks that prompted the request included a strike on Riyadh’s international airport on October 10 that killed 13 people and a missile strike on the Saudi Aramco headquarters in Dhahran.
Egypt’s EGX30 stock index fell early in Monday’s session amid concern over possible military involvement before recovering to close 0.4% higher.
This story is developing. The vote is expected on October 26.
Sources: Reuters; TBS News.
