Egypt’s parliament authorizes El-Sisi on Saudi ‘defensive’ support

Egypt’s House of Representatives voted to grant President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi a mandate Monday to take necessary measures to back Saudi Arabia in light of regional developments, House Speaker Hesham Badawy announced following a third closed-door hearing on the request.

Lawmakers approved the resolution by a standing vote rather than an individual roll call after concluding floor statements. Two parliamentary sources told Al Manassa that nine lawmakers representing the Egyptian Social Democratic Party rejected the motion, alongside independent MPs Ahmed Farghali, Diaa El-Din Dawoud, and Ahmed El-Sanguedi. Abdel Aleem Dawoud of the Wafd Party and Atef Maghawry of the Tagammu Party personally broke ranks to oppose the decision despite their parties’ institutional backing.

Article 130 of the House of Representatives’ bylaws does not define specific voting mechanisms for such determinations, but mandates a two-thirds majority to declare war or deploy armed forces on combat missions outside national borders during an urgent closed session convened at the president’s behest following consultation with the National Defense Council.

The National Defense Council, chaired by El-Sisi, convened on Oct. 18 to announce unreserved alignment with Saudi Arabia alongside the extension of all necessary and feasible forms of support to “defend its security and stability, and to safeguard its assets, territorial integrity, and Islamic holy sites.” 

The council also emphasized the intensification and continuation of political and diplomatic initiatives coordinated with regional and international actors to de-escalate regional tensions and achieve peaceful settlements.

On Oct. 17, El-Sisi had summoned the House of Representatives to an emergency session to seek authorization for military engagement to defend Saudi borders and security should the kingdom request it, coming amid escalating confrontations between Saudi Arabia and the Ansar Allah (Houthis) movement in Yemen.

“We stand firmly and with full support to shield and defend the territories of our brothers in the Gulf,” El-Sisi said during the graduation ceremony of the Egyptian Military Academy’s inaugural class. 

Addressing Saudi leadership directly, he added: “In Egypt, pursuant to the directives of King Salman and the directives of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, we will carry out any measure to protect and defend you.”

Article 152 of the Egyptian Constitution bars the president from declaring war or deploying the armed forces on combat assignments abroad without prior consultation with the National Defense Council and ratification by a two-thirds majority in the House of Representatives.

Parties seated in parliament had previously formalized their positions on dispatching military forces to Saudi Arabia. The Nation’s Future Party and the National Front Party declared support for the mandate, along with the Salafist ‘Nour Party’ and the Wafd Party. 

“Genuine Arab solidarity must not remain confined to statements and rhetoric,” Wafd Party leader El-Sayed El-Badawi said.

Conversely, political forces and parties outside parliament voiced rejection of any Egyptian military deployment to Saudi Arabia, including the Popular Socialist Alliance Party and the nascent Tayar Al-Amal (Hope Current). 

The Civil Democratic Movement affirmed its opposition to entangling the Egyptian Armed Forces in any regional war on behalf of any party, stressing that sovereign Egyptian national interests must dictate any determination on the matter.

In September, the AP reported that Saudi Arabia requested defensive support from Egypt, France, the United Kingdom, and Pakistan to counter missiles and unmanned aerial vehicles launched by Ansar Allah, driven by depleted interceptor missile stockpiles and Washington’s declining willingness to intervene directly with military force.

The revelation emerged one day after Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman visited Cairo on Sept. 15 to confer with El-Sisi on regional developments and Red Sea security, though neither party disclosed details regarding emerging military arrangements at the time.