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October 26, 2026

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Analysis

What's at stake as Libya's eastern parliament approves Turkey maritime deal

Libya's eastern-based parliament's approval of a long-disputed maritime deal with Turkey marks a strategic win for Ankara as Saddam Hifter seeks Turkish backing for his presidential ambitions, according to analysts.

Ezgi Akin

In Ankara, reporting on diplomacy, EU-Turkey ties, NATO

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi attends a joint statements and agreements during the EU and Egypt summit in Brussels, on Oct. 22, 2025.

Sisi says Egypt has no ‘territorial ambitions’ after Israel’s Smotrich threatens Sinai

The Egyptian president’s remarks follow a warning from Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich that Israel would seize the Sinai Peninsula if Egypt attacks.

China's President Xi Jinping (center L) walks along with his Egyptian counterpart Abdel Fattah al-Sisi followed by their wives Peng Liyuan and Entissar Amer (R) upon their arrival at the Cairo International Airport on September 1, 2026. President Xi Jinping arrived in Egypt on September 1, making a rare trip to the Middle East as both countries face the threat of US sanctions over financial links to Iran. (Photo by Khaled DESOUKI / POOL / AFP via Getty Images)

Analysis

Why renewed Egypt-Ethiopia tensions are a problem for China

For Beijing, the renewed Egypt-Ethiopia standoff is a zero-sum bind that threatens vital strategic interests on both sides of the Nile.

Joyce Karam

A quadrilateral summit was held on Oct. 4, 2026, attended by Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al‑Sisi, Eritrea President Isaias Afwerki, President of Somalia Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, and Chairman of the Transitional Sovereignty Council of Sudan Gen. Abdel Fattah al‑Burhan, in New El Alamein City, Egypt.

Egypt, Eritrea, Somalia and Sudan hold summit amid Ethiopia tensions

All four countries have increasingly tense relations with Ethiopia, driven by disputes over the Nile, Red Sea access and security.

Latest News

Explainer

Why are Egypt and Ethiopia clashing over Tigray, Somalia and the Nile?

This general view shows the site of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) in Guba, Ethiopia, on February 19, 2022. - Ethiopia's massive hydro-electric dam project on a tributary of the Nile has raised regional tensions notably with Egypt, which depends on the huge river for 97 percent of its water supply. Government officials said the dam would begin producing electricity on Sunday, more than a decade since work first started. (Photo by Amanuel SILESHI / AFP) (Photo by AMANUEL SILESHI/AFP via Getty Ima

Ex-Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar to sue Netanyahu over Oct. 7 accusations: What to know

Ronen Bar, former chief of Israel's domestic Shin Bet security agency

On secret UAE visit, Netanyahu asked MBZ to deny pre-Oct. 7 warnings

Israeli PM

20 Israelis stranded in Ethiopia seek evacuation as fighting resumes: What to know

A general view of the damaged building housing Tigray TV, the state broadcaster of the Tigray region, following a drone strike in Mekelle, Ethiopia, Sept. 27, 2026.

Beatrice Farhat

Associate Editor (Lebanon)

In Beirut, reporting on regional news, culture, conflict

Jonathan Fenton-Harvey

In London, reporting on North Africa and Gulf politics

Mohammed Magdy

In Berlin, reporting on Egyptian politics

Ayah Aman

In Cairo, reporting on politics and culture

Salwa Samir

In Giza, reporting on politics

Nada Shaker

In Cairo, reporting on culture

A wooden pirogue sails at dusk on the Congo River against the backdrop of high rises in the Democratic Republic of Congo's capital Kinshasa, March 7, 2010. Picture taken March 7, 2010. REUTERS/Katrina Manson (DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO - Tags: SOCIETY ENVIRONMENT CITYSCAPE) - RTR2BDRC

Controversy continues over Nile, Congo river projects

The recent decision of Egypt to suspend the works of a private company tasked with the project of linking the Congo River to the Nile stirred much controversy, considering the water quota this project would have provided to Egyptians.

A protester chants anti-government slogans during a protest by women at the same location in central Cairo where activist Shaimaa Sabbagh was killed during a protest on Saturday, January 29, 2015. A group of women protested in Cairo on Thursday against the death of Sabbagh and around 25 other activists allegedly killed by security forces at recent rallies marking the anniversary of Egypt's 2011 uprising. Sabbagh, 32, died on Saturday as riot police were trying to break up a small, peaceful demonstration. Fr

Former Egyptian diplomat cites progress on women's rights

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has made some gestures toward women, though his overall human rights record remains controversial.

Girls walk past a banner with a picture of Russian President Vladimir Putin along a bridge, in central Cairo February 9, 2015. Putin is due to arrive on Monday on his first visit to Egypt in ten years. REUTERS/Asmaa Waguih(EGYPT - Tags: POLITICS) - RTR4OTY2

Russia looks to Egypt for Mideast foothold

Russia wants to increase its regional presence in the Arab world, and having Egypt share the Russian narrative of regional dynamics is a way out of its isolation.

RAMALLAH, WEST BANK - DECEMBER 18: (ISRAEL OUT) Palestinians celebrate as they wait for the release of Palestinian prisoners on December 18, 2011 in Ramallah, West Bank. Israel released 550 Palestinian prisoners to complete a swap deal which brought about the release of captive soldier Gilad Shalit. (Photo by Uriel Sinai/Getty images)

Hamas makes release of detainees condition for negotiations

Hamas is making the release of the detainees of the 2011 prisoner exchange deal a condition for any future negotiations, saying that Israel did not abide by the agreements.

Obama: 'Iran’s program has not advanced'

US allies puzzled by March deadline for consideration of Senate sanctions bill; Iran’s gesture to Saudi Arabia; Iran’s man in Beirut; Erdogan’s anti-Western pivot; Aleppo’s fuel shortage; Israel reconciling to Hamas?

Supporters of Egypt's deposed Islamist President Mohamed Mursi and the Muslim Brotherhood wave Turkish and Egyptian flags during a rally in protest against the recent violence in Egypt, outside of the Eminonu New mosque in Istanbul August 17, 2013. REUTERS/Murad Sezer (TURKEY - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST) - RTX12P99

Turkey accused of escalating violence in Egypt

Egyptians suspect Turkey of allowing Muslim Brotherhood affiliates to provoke violence in their country.

The golden mask of Pharaoh Tutankhamen is seen on display at the Egyptian Museum in Cairo, January 24, 2015. The Egyptian Museum in Cairo acknowledged on Saturday that one of its greatest treasures, the mask of King Tutankhamun, had been crudely glued back together after being damaged, but insisted the item could be restored to its former glory. The golden mask's beard was detached in August, something the museum had not made public until photographs surfaced on the Internet showing a line of glue around it

Egyptian antiquities remain at risk

A mix of ineptitude, mismanagement and corruption is leading to the damage, loss and theft of invaluable treasures from Egypt’s history.

Egyptian soldiers stand guard at an army checkpoint in Arish, North Sinai, Egypt, January 31, 2015. President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi said on Saturday that Egypt faces a long, hard battle against militancy, days after one of the bloodiest attacks on security forces in years. On Thursday night, four separate attacks on security forces in North Sinai were among the worst in the country in years. Islamic State's Egyptian wing, Sinai Province, claimed the killing of at least 30 soldiers and police officers. REU

Wilayat Sinai targets Egyptian army stronghold

According to sources, Wilayat Sinai carried out an organized attack against the largest headquarters of the Egyptian army in the peninsula.

Palestinian workers participate in efforts to clear the rubble of a school, that witnesses said was destroyed by Israeli shelling during the most recent conflict between Israel and Hamas, in the east of Gaza City, December 3, 2014. According to housing minister Mufeed al-Hasayna, Gaza needs 8,000 tonnes of cement a day to meet demand. A new system set up with the United Nations to comply with Israeli requirements lets through at most 2,000, he said. At that rate, reconstruction would take more than 30 years

Fate of Gazans is in Hamas' hands

The Hamas movement is at a decisive crossroads: either it relinquishes its military control and concentrates on rehabilitating the Gaza Strip or it risks destroying all of Gaza's residents.

People buy Suez Canal investment certificates at a bank in Cairo September 4, 2014. Egypt issued government certificates to finance the Suez Canal project on Monday, state media said, as the country aims to expand trade along what is the fastest shipping route between Europe and Asia. The five-year investment certificates have a 12 percent interest rate and pay quarterly dividends and will come in 10, 100 and 1,000 Egyptian pound ($1.40-$140) denominations, MENA said. REUTERS/Asmaa Waguih (EGYPT - Tags: BUS

Al-Azhar, Salafist group spar over banking interest

The Salafist Call in Egypt issued a fatwa prohibiting banking interest in a move that could push Egyptians to either keep their money at home or in Islamic banks.

A trader works at the Egyptian stock exchange in Cairo November 19, 2014. The Egyptian pound was flat at a central bank dollar sale on Wednesday but weakened significantly on the black market as Egypt's plans to repay a $2.5 billion Qatari deposit raised concerns of a looming dollar shortage, traders said. REUTERS/Mohamed Abd El Ghany (EGYPT - Tags: BUSINESS) - RTR4EQ4F

Egyptian pound's drop part of Central Bank's plan

The Central Bank's efforts to reduce the price of the local currency against the dollar are working to undermine the black market, but these measures risk increasing prices.

Egypt's Communications and Information Technology Minister Atef Helmy speaks during an interview with Reuters at the Smart Village on the outskirts of Cairo October 20, 2014. Egypt is seeking billions of dollars in investment to upgrade its telecommunications infrastructure as part of efforts to attract multinationals and restore growth after three years of political upheaval, telecoms minister Helmy said. He said said Egypt needs investment of $5-$6 billion to build broadband internet across the nation and

Austerity for Egypt's Internet?

As social media activists in Egypt rally to demand faster and cheaper Internet services, the government of Ibrahim Mehleb asks citizens to limit their Internet consumption, a move many see as one austerity step too far.