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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

Ambassador David M. Satterfield, senior advisor to the Secretary of State and Special Coordinator for Iraq, speaks during a news conference in Baghdad's Green Zone June 10, 2008. REUTERS/Mohammed Jalil/Pool (IRAQ) - RTX6QM7

Satterfield to temporarily helm US embassy Egypt

David Satterfield, current head of the Multinational Force & Observers mission in Egypt, will temporarily helm the US Egypt mission following the departure of ambassador Anne Patterson.

Muslim Brotherhood's President-elect Mohamed Morsy is seen on screens at the Egyptian Television headquarters control room during his first televised address to the nation in Cairo June 24, 2012. Morsy's victory in Egypt's presidential election takes the Muslim Brotherhood's long power struggle with the military into a new round that will be fought inside the institutions of state themselves and may force new compromises on the Islamists. Picture taken June 24, 2012. To match Analysis EGYPT-ELECTION/STRUGGL

Muslim Brotherhood's media machinations

Although the Muslim Brotherhood complains of media bias favoring Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, their own media apparatus under President Mohammed Morsi was no better.

What made Abbas change position on Gaza war?

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas surprised many, including his Palestinian critics, when he publicly expressed support for armed resistance against Israel in Gaza.

Lebanon's Hezbollah supporters hold banners and wave Hezbollah (C) and Palestinian flags (L) during a demonstration against Israel's military action in Gaza, in front of the United Nations headquarters in Beirut July 18, 2014. Israel stepped up its land offensive in Gaza with artillery, tanks and gunboats on Friday and declared it could "significantly widen" an operation Palestinian officials said was killing ever greater numbers of civilians. Israeli gunboats lit up the sky with their fire before dawn whil

Hezbollah, Hamas repair political ties during breakup

The fraught relations between Hezbollah and Hamas could come to an end as Israel continues its ground offensive in the Gaza Strip.

A protester covers his face as he stands in front of tear gas during clashes with riot police along a road at Kornish El Nile which leads to the U.S. embassy, near Tahrir Square in Cairo September 15, 2012. Clashes near the U.S. Embassy in central Cairo between police and Egyptians incensed over a film denigrating the Prophet Mohammad entered their fourth day early on Saturday, leaving one protester dead and dozens more injured. REUTERS/Amr Abdallah Dalsh (EGYPT - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST RELIGION) - R

Egypt campaigns against atheism

The Egyptian government begins a new program to combat the rise of atheism; however, activists question whether this increase is even real.

U.S. ambassador to Egypt Anne Patterson attends a meeting between Egypt's interim President Adli Mansour and U.S. Deputy Secretary of State William Burns at El-Thadiya presidential palace in Cairo, July 15, 2013. Burns, the first senior U.S. official to visit Egypt since the army toppled its elected president meets officials on Monday to urge them to swiftly restore democracy, while thousands of supporters of the ousted Islamist leader take to the streets. REUTERS/Amr Abdallah Dalsh (EGYPT - Tags: POLITICS

Both Egypt, US reviewing their relations, Egypt's envoy says

Egypt’s US Ambassador Mohamed Tawfik told Al-Monitor that the review of relations is not a downgrade, but aims to ensure ties are strengthened 'on sounder and stronger foundations'.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry speaks to reporters after meeting Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in the West Bank city of Ramallah July 23, 2014. Israeli forces pounded Gaza on Wednesday, meeting stiff resistance from Hamas Islamists and sending thousands of residents fleeing, as Kerry said on his visit to Israel ceasefire talks had made some progress. Israel launched its offensive on July 8 to halt missile salvoes by Hamas and its allies, struggling under the weight of an Israeli-Egyptian economic

New moves by Saudi Arabia, Qatar signal drive for cease-fire

Regional capitals are seeing intense diplomatic activity, while regional powers and Washington agree on the need to end the war in Gaza as soon as possible.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry (L) speaks with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi in Cairo July 22, 2014. Israel pounded targets across the Gaza Strip on Tuesday, saying no ceasefire was near as top U.S. and U.N. diplomats pursued talks on halting fighting that has claimed more than 500 lives. Dispatched by U.S. President Barack Obama to the Middle East to seek a ceasefire, Kerry held talks on Tuesday in Cairo with Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shukri. REUTERS/Charles Dharapak/Pool (EGYPT - Tags

Egypt's Sisi holds Hamas' fate in his hands

Hamas has made a desperate bid for Qatar's support, but even Qatar's money won't save it if Egypt doesn't open the crossings into Gaza.

A general view of the venue during an extraordinary session of the Arab League at the league's headquarters in Cairo July 14, 2014. Egypt launched an initiative on Monday to halt fighting between Israel and Palestinian militants, proposing a ceasefire to be followed by talks in Cairo on settling the conflict in which Gaza authorities say more than 170 people have died. REUTERS/Amr Abdallah Dalsh (EGYPT - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST) - RTR3YNOV

Cease-fire initiatives pit Turkey against Egypt

Is Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan more concerned with undermining Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi than to broker a cease-fire in Gaza?

Muslims visit and walk in front of the Mecca Clock Tower after they finished their Umrah Mawlid al-Nabawi pilgrimage, at the Grand Mosque in the holy city of Mecca January 14, 2014. Muslims mark Eid Mawlid al-Nabawi, or the birth of Prophet Mohammad, on Tuesday. REUTERS/Amr Abdallah Dalsh (SAUDI ARABIA - Tags: RELIGION ANNIVERSARY) - RTX17DLC

Saudi Arabia denies visas to Egyptian pilgrims

As Saudi authorities denied Umrah visas to more than 50,000 Egyptians, Egypt’s Ministry of Tourism says the crisis with Saudi Arabia is being solved.

Egypt scrambles to stop missiles launched at Israel from Sinai

Reports of rockets fired at Israel by militants in the Sinai Peninsula are an embarrassment for the Egyptian government as they struggle to contain insurgent groups in the region.

Smoke trails are seen as rockets are launched towards Israel from the northern Gaza Strip July 13, 2014. Thousands fled their homes in a Gaza town on Sunday after Israel warned them to leave ahead of threatened attacks on rocket-launching sites, on the sixth day of an offensive that Palestinian officials said has killed at least 160 people. Militants in the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip kept up rockets salvoes deep into the Jewish state and the worst bout of Israel-Palestinian bloodshed in two years showed no sign

Iran boosts Hamas rocket capacity

Congress is skeptical of extending of Iran talks; Iran has a hand in Gaza; acrimony between Egypt and Hamas is hindering a cease-fire agreement; and the Islamic State using the Turkish Consulate in Mosul as its headquarters.