Trump has made no secret of his belief that US vessels should transit the strategic waterway for free. On Saturday, he publicly demanded as much, saying the canal "would not exist without the United States of America”. One Egyptian MP was reported as characterising the Trump administration's moves as blackmail and rubbished Trump's claim about the canal's existence, saying it was "purely Egyptian" (Read more at Middle East Eye).
the three leaders called on the international community "to push for a cessation of Israel's war on Gaza, to reinstate the cease-fire and implement all its phases, and to resume the flow of sufficient humanitarian aid to stop the deepening crisis faced by Gazans." (Read more at Daily Sabah)
Earlier on Tuesday, Trump said his phone call with El-Sisi “went very well,” noting that they discussed numerous topics, including the developments in Gaza and Yemen. On his Truth Social account, Trump said he discussed with El-Sisi the progress made against the Houthis, as the US continues its airstrikes against the Yemeni group (Read more at Al Ahram).
The draft said the board would comprise key Arab countries, members of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, the United States, Britain, the European Union and its member states, and others. The Egyptian draft does not tackle the issue of what actions could be taken if Hamas refuses to disarm or step aside from politics (Read more at Arabnews).
Egypt has said Trump had extended an open invitation to Sisi to visit the White House earlier this month. Egypt’s President, Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi, will not travel to Washington for talks at the White House as long as the agenda includes US President Donald Trump’s plan to displace Palestinians from Gaza. Jordan’s King Abdullah appeared uncomfortable during a meeting with Trump at the White House on Tuesday, at which Trump discussed his Gaza plan (Read more at Middle East Monitor).
Egypt's foreign ministry said Abdelatty, in a meeting in Washington, stressed the importance of achieving "a just and lasting peace that ensures Palestinians’ rights, including the establishment of an independent state on their entire national territory”. A statement by the US State Department after the meeting did not explicitly mention Trump's plan but added that Rubio "reiterated the importance of close cooperation to advance post-conflict planning for the governance and security of Gaza" and said "Hamas can never govern Gaza again" (Read more at Middle East Eye).
Sisi expressed confidence that Trump could bring peace to the region. He invited Trump to visit Egypt. Egypt said the two leaders had a positive dialogue that stressed the importance of fully implementing the first and second phases of the ceasefire. The White House statement on the call did not refer to the ceasefire (Read more at Global South World).
Several parties called for the demonstration, most notably the Union of Arab Tribes, headed by Egyptian businessman Ibrahim al-Organi, who is reportedly close to Egyptian intelligence services (Read more at New Arab).
Trump on Saturday floated a plan to "clean out" Gaza, where Israel's war has killed tens of thousands and caused a humanitarian crisis, in comments that echoed long-standing Palestinian fears of being permanently driven from their homes. The suggestion by Trump was not mentioned in the U.S. State Department statement released on Tuesday after the call between Rubio and Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty (Read more at AOL).
The Democratic former US senator Bob Menendez was sentenced in federal court on Wednesday to 11 years in prison over his 2024 conviction for taking bribes, including receiving gold bars in exchange for doing favors for Egypt and for New Jersey businessmen (Read more at Guardian).
It also includes related elements of logistics and program support for an estimated cost of $625 million. The Government of Egypt has requested to buy equipment and services including four (4) Component Based Total Ship System, 21st Century (COMBATSS-21) combat management systems to modernize its four fast missile craft (FMC) (Read more at Global Defense Aerospace Post).
The Biden administration alienated traditional Middle Eastern allies like Egypt and Saudi Arabia by punishing them for human rights concerns. The Trump team seems to be signaling a return to friendlier ties. Egypt has been a bit of a spoiler recently, turning a blind eye to Hamas smuggling that helped fortify the terrorist group in Gaza. Perhaps the new administration’s carrot and stick approach will yield positive results (Read more at JNS).
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and US President Joe Biden emphasized Tuesday the importance of overcoming obstacles and showing flexibility to secure a cease-fire agreement in Gaza. The remarks were made during a phone call between the two leaders (Read more at Anadolu Ajansı).
“In this moment of sorrow, I extend my heartfelt condolences to the family of former American president Jimmy Carter, as well as to the president and the people of the United States of America,” El-Sisi wrote on his social media accounts (Read more at Al Ahram).
Under the deal, Egypt will acquire $630 million worth of Lockheed Martin Hellfire missiles, spare parts, and training, alongside $30 million worth of Advanced Precision Kill Weapon Systems (APKWS). Additionally, Egypt will acquire $4.69 billion worth of equipment to support its M1A1 Abrams tank fleet, which it co-produces with the US. Meanwhile, Morocco received approval to purchase 500 GBU-39B Small Diameter Bombs valued at $86 million and $88.4 million worth of AIM-120C-8 air-to-air missiles for its F-16V jets (Read more at Africa.com).
The equipment includes 555 US-made M1A1 Abrams tanks operated by Egypt, $630 million in 2,183 Hellfire air-to-surface missiles, and $30 million in precision-guided munitions. Egypt has become an increasingly close partner in mediating the Gaza crisis despite serious human rights concerns. US President Joe Biden took office in 2021 vowing a harder line on Egypt over human rights concerns under President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, but his administration has repeatedly gone ahead with arms deals with Egypt. The US Congress can still block the sales, but such attempts are usually unsuccessful. Cairo is one of the largest recipients of US security aid since its peace treaty with Israel in 1979 (Read more at Defense Post).
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi met with US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan and Brett McGurk, the US Middle East and North Africa Coordinator, in Cairo and attended by Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty, Egyptian Intelligence Chief Hassan Rashad, and US Ambassador to Egypt Herro Mustafa Garg, focused on recent regional developments and joint efforts to establish a cease-fire and facilitate the exchange of detainees in Gaza (Read more at Anadolu Ajansı)
Abdel Fattah El Sisi told US president-elect he looks forward to working together. In 2018, Mr Trump praised Egyptian leader El Sisi for doing “a fantastic job” and said the US was “very much behind” him. Egypt's pro-government media speaks of Mr Trump as a strong leader who treats the nation with respect and values Mr El Sisi's leadership (Read more at The National).
The missiles have been in hot demand in Ukraine, where they have successfully stopped Russian assaults from the air, and in neighboring European countries which fear they may also need to beat back Russian forces. Egypt would put the Stingers on vehicles equipped with the Avenger launcher system versus a shoulder-fired launcher (Read more AOL).
Blinken will not visit Israel on this trip, the first time he has skipped a stop in Washington’s closest regional ally since Palestinian militant group Hamas sparked the war in Gaza nearly a year ago. State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said that was because Washington aimed to discuss bilateral issues with Egypt on this trip and the Gaza ceasefire proposal that U.S. and mediators have been working on was still not ready to present to Israel. "So it would be premature to be presenting such a proposal, or doing any other diplomatic engagements," he added (Read more at USNews).
Top US diplomat will also chair US-Egypt Strategic Dialogue with his Egyptian counterpart, according to State Department. The visit, Blinken's 10th to the Middle East since Oct. 7 last year, comes as the US, along with Qatar and Egypt, are working to secure a cease-fire and hostage swap deal between Israel and Hamas. US President Joe Biden said on May 31 that Israel presented a hostage-prisoner exchange, the Israeli military’s withdrawal from Gaza, a surge in aid and a permanent end to hostilities (Read more at Anadolu Agency).
U.S. President Joe Biden’s administration has decided to provide Egypt with its full $1.3 billion military aid allocation for 2024, which comes amid Egypt’s critical role in mediating talks between Israel and Hamas in an effort to secure a ceasefire in Gaza, overriding human rights conditions for the first time during this administration (Read more at Defense Blog).
The meetings held in Washington, DC and were participated by Ambassador Moataz Zahran, Egypt's Ambassador to the United States. Discussions included enhancing collaboration in key sectors such as renewable energy, technology, infrastructure, and agriculture within the framework of the long-term strategic partnership (Read more at Egypt Today).
Minister of Foreign Affairs Badr Abdelatty, during a meeting with a US congressional delegation, led by Senator Joni Ernst, emphasized the increasing significance of the Egypt-US strategic partnership in resolving successive regional crises, including the war in Gaza, the crises in Libya and Sudan, and security in the Red Sea (Read more at AlAhram).
Brenda Abdelall would be tasked with shoring up support from a community frustrated with U.S. support for Israel's war on Gaza. She most recently served as senior counselor to the Department of Homeland Security's secretary. Two weeks ago, Harris's campaign hired Afghan American lawyer Nasrina Bargzie to lead outreach to Muslim voters (Read more at Al Ahram).
Egyptian officials and the US ambassador inaugurated renovations of several monuments and buildings in Historic Cairo, including the Bimaristan Al-Muayyad Sheikh, a hospital complex built in 1420 A.D. Other monuments restored with US Agency for International Development help and inaugurated on Sunday included the 18th century Sabil Kuttab of Ruqayya Dudu and the 14th century Gate of Manjak Al-Silahdar. (Read more at Middle East Monitor).
The three leaders said there is a framework agreement on the table and only its implementation details need to be finalized. They have called on the two sides to resume urgent talks on Thursday, August 15 in (Doha or Cairo) to fill all remaining gaps and begin implementing the agreement without any delay (Read more at Axios).
Under U.S. pressure, the Egyptian government agreed to resume the flow of aid trucks to Gaza through Israel, after deliveries were halted two weeks ago in protest of Israel's takeover of the Palestinian side of the Rafah crossing. Senior U.S. officials were also involved in the talks and pressured Israel, Egypt and the Palestinian Authority to find a solution that would allow the reactivation of the Rafah crossing as soon as possible. The main goal of the plan was to remove Hamas from involvement in the Rafah crossing (Read more at Axios).
The Biden administration struggles to respond as two allies battle over who should control Gaza's lifeline. Analysts say that Egypt is unlikely to suspend its peace treaty with Israel over the dispute, but in addition to publicly criticising Israel, could quietly stonewall cooperation on security matters that both the US and Israel need (Read more at Middle East Eye).
CIA director is to travel to Cairo this weekend for talks with the head of Israel's Mossad and top Qatari and Egyptian officials to break the deadlock in negotiations. The current proposal could lead to a 6-week ceasefire and the release of 40 hostages — female soldiers and other women, men over the age of 50 and in critical medical conditions. In return, Israel would release roughly 700 Palestinian prisoners, including about 100 who are serving life sentences for killing Israelis (Read more at Axios).
Cairo wants help through funding and equipment if an Israeli operation into Rafah sends Gazans fleeing to its border. The Egyptian requests come as American officials deliberate with their counterparts in Qatar, Egypt and Israel to iron out a roadmap that will eventually lead to a pause in fighting (Read more at Politico).
Egypt’s foreign minister, Sameh Shoukry said, "It is not enough for rhetoric, it is not enough to state opposition, it is also important to indicate what if that position is circumvented, what if that position is not respected" (Read more at The Cradle).
William Burns secretly arrived in Egypt yesterday and headed to Doha today for a meeting with Qatar’s prime minister. He will next travel to Israel (Read more at Aljazeera).
Both presidents stressed the need to avoid the expansion of the conflict in the region. Egypt urged the UNSC member States to provide protection for the Palestinian people. Biden praised Egypt's intense political efforts to reach a truce and its pioneering role in providing humanitarian aid to the people of Gaza. They also discussed strengthening the strategic bilateral partnership (Read more at Al Ahram).
Sandvine, which has been accused of helping facilitate surveillance on Egypt's opposition, supplies what is known as "deep packet inspection technology" which examines and manages network traffic. U.S. companies are effectively barred from shipping goods and technology to Sandvine with its addition to the list (Read more at USNews).
The world's most influential Sunni institution urged the world to intervene to stop the rivers of blood in Palestine, put an end to this savage aggression, and halt the massacres and daily crimes (Read more at Al Ahram).
Brett McGurk is expected to visit Israel and Egypt this week for talks on the possible Israeli military operation in Rafah and efforts to secure the release of hostages held by Hamas in Gaza. Isrealis stressed they won't operation in Rafah without coordinating with the U.S. and Egypt. Israeli and U.S. officials have admitted that it would take many weeks before an operation in Rafah could go forward — possibly only in mid-April after the Islamic holy month of Ramadan is over (Read more at Axios).
