Egypt.. Parliament resumes “mandate” discussions to support Saudi Arabia next week

The Egyptian Parliament decided, on Monday, to resume discussions on President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi’s request for a mandate to support Saudi Arabia in defending itself, next week. The (official) General Information Service said, in a brief statement on its social media platforms: “The plenary session of the House of Representatives has been adjourned and will resume next Monday to complete the discussion on the President of the Republic’s request for authorization to support Saudi Arabia.”

According to Article 152 of the Egyptian Constitution, the country’s president does not declare war or send forces outside the state’s borders except after taking the opinion of the National Defense Council and the approval of the House of Representatives by a two-thirds majority of members. Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi said on Saturday that Egypt will implement any measure to protect the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, calling on Parliament to hold an emergency session to approve its authorization to take this action.

Al-Sisi added, during the graduation ceremony of new batches from the Egyptian Military Academy in the New Administrative Capital, on Saturday, that “Egypt is ready to implement any measure requested by Saudi Arabia to defend its security and sovereignty,” adding: “We stand strongly to protect and defend the lands of our brothers in the Gulf.” Al-Sisi continued: “We must acknowledge the kindness done by our brothers in the Gulf, Saudi Arabia, the Emirates and Kuwait, and thank them for their support for Egypt after 2013.”

This comes at a time when the Houthi group in Yemen warned that “Egypt’s sliding down this path will pose a serious threat to its national security and internal stability before others,” according to a letter reported by the Houthi-run Saba News Agency, from the Speaker of the House of Representatives (affiliated with the Houthis) to his Egyptian counterpart, on Saturday.