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Egypt

October 28, 2026

Cairo 11:09 am

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Lina Attalah in an undated photo

Egypt orders closure of Mada Masr, releases editor Lina Attalah

The Committee to Protect Journalists has ranked Egypt, which has just ordered the closure of Mada Masr, among the world’s top jailers of journalists.

Egyptian soldiers man an infantry fighting vehicle

Explainer

As parliament approves, what's driving Egypt's 'defensive' support to Saudi Arabia?

Egypt, which has one of the region's largest militaries, is reliant on Saudi investment and ties the kingdom's security to its own.

Fidan

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.

Latest News

Analysis

Why renewed Egypt-Ethiopia tensions are a problem for China

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)

Joyce Karam

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

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.

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

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 sign post near Kibbutz Merom Golan in the Golan Heights shows the distance from Israel's northern border to other destinations May 2, 2013. Israel's military said on Tuesday it had called up hundreds of reservists for a drill in northern Israel where tensions are high with neighbours Syria and Lebanon, but a military spokesman said there was no change in the overall security situation. Israel captured the Golan Heights from Syria in the 1967 Middle East war and annexed the territory in 1981, a move not re

Israel’s Strategic Reset

Israel is reconsidering its new strategic approach to the region in the context of US policies toward Iran, Syria, Egypt and Israeli-Palestinian peace, writes Ben Caspit.

Palestinian policemen loyal to Hamas inspect the scene after an Israeli airstrike in Gaza City April 30, 2013. An Israeli airstrike killed a Palestinian and wounded another in the Gaza Strip on Tuesday, medics said, in the first targeted attack against militants since a ceasefire ended an eight-day war in November. REUTERS/Suhaib Salem (GAZA - Tags: CIVIL UNREST POLITICS) - RTXZ4BM

Hamas Enforces Quiet Border With Israel

Alon Ben David writes: That Hamas hasn’t replenished its supply of rockets lately is further proof of an ideological turnabout underway in the movement.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry (R) shakes hands with Qatar's Prime Minister Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim al-Thani as they meet with members of the Arab League at Blair House in Washington, April 29, 2013. REUTERS/Jason Reed (UNITED STATES - Tags: POLITICS) - RTXZ41W

The Two Faces of Qatar

Shlomi Eldar considers Qatar's promoting peace based on compromises between Israel and the Palestinians while promoting a sectarian Islamic agenda by supporting armed groups in Syria.

Cairo's Art Festivals Engulfed in Politics

Cutting-edge art festivals in Cairo blend art and politics, Sarah el-Sirgany reports from Cairo.

Diplomats from the United States and Israel are seen with other mourners as they bury veteran Jewish leader Carmen Weinstein, at the Bassatine Cemetery, Cairo's only active Jewish burial site, in Cairo, April 18, 2013. Weinstein, 82, died last Saturday at her home in Cairo where she was known over the past two decades for leading efforts to preserve the overwhelmingly Muslim country's Jewish heritage. REUTERS/Asmaa Waguih (EGYPT - Tags: RELIGION POLITICS OBITUARY) - RTXYQYI

Jews in Egypt: The Story Of a Dying Community

The passing of Carmen Weinstein, leader of the Egyptian Jewish community, symbolizes the near-end of the community in the land of the Nile, writes Jacky Hugi.

A Bedouin stands in front of a coffee shop overlooking Coloured Canyon in the Sinai Peninsula near the town of Nuweiba March 2, 2007. The 800 metre (0.5 miles) long rock formation consists of sandstone, limestone, granite and veins of basalt. REUTERS/Goran Tomasevic (EGYPT) - RTR1N0X1

Why Did Israel Forget About a Prisoner in Egypt?

After 12 years in Egyptian prison, Israeli Ouda Tarabin embarks on a hunger strike as a last resort to awaken public opinion, writes Shlomi Eldar.

Egypt's President Mohamed Mursi (2nd R) meets with Somalia's President Sheikh Sharif Ahmed (3rd R) during the African Union (AU) leaders' meeting in Addis Ababa July 16, 2012. REUTERS/Mohamed Abd El Mouty/Egyptian Presidency/Handout (ETHIOPIA - Tags: POLITICS) FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY. NOT FOR SALE FOR MARKETING OR ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS. THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. IT IS DISTRIBUTED, EXACTLY AS RECEIVED BY REUTERS, AS A SERVICE TO CLIENTS - RTR34ZTB

Egypt Struggles to Reclaim Role In Africa

As tensions heat up between Egypt and Ethiopia regarding a major Ethiopian dam on the Nile, Egypt is seeking to reassert itself, writes Abdelrahman Youssef.

A border officer stamps the passport of a Palestinian passenger on the Egyptian side of the Rafah border crossing over to Gaza at Rafah city, some 350 km (217 miles) northeast of Cairo August 10, 2012. Egyptian military forces have captured six "terrorists" in the Sinai region after an attack on a police station earlier this week that killed 16 border guards, state television quoted a military source on Friday as saying. Egypt opened the Rafah border on Friday to allow the return of pilgrims from Saudi Arab

Palestinian Refugees in Egypt

Palestinian refugees in Egypt still face many challenges and discrimination, writes Mahmoud Omar.

A triathlete runs out of the Red Sea during the Elite Men's Triathlon ETU European Championships in the southern Israeli city of Eilat April 21, 2012. Picture taken April 21, 2012. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun (ISRAEL - Tags: SPORT TRIATHLON TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY) - RTR3BK4J

Rocket Attack Could Shake Israel-Egypt Security Ties

The rockets fired lately on the southern city of Eilat might force Israel to choose between the security of its citizens and keeping the peace accord with Egypt, writes Alon Ben David.

A general view shows Al-Azhar University, which was founded in the 10th century through the endowment of a charitable trust, or awqaf, in Cairo March 19, 2013. The endowments, known as awqaf, receive donations from Muslims to operate specific social projects, such as mosques, schools and welfare schemes. The system goes back more than a thousand years, to soon after the birth of Islam. A fund management venture set up in Dubai this month is taking aim at one of the great backwaters of the Middle Eastern eco

Egyptians Show High Interest In Israeli Literature, Culture

Jacky Hugi writes that the study of the Hebrew language and its literature is widespread in Cairo's universities.

A Palestinian farmer burns mints at a farm in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip April 13, 2013. Palestinian farmers in Gaza began destroying three tonnes of herbs on Saturday, saying a prolonged closure of the crossing into Israel meant the plants were no longer fit for export to Europe. REUTERS/Ibraheem Abu Mustafa (GAZA - Tags: POLITICS AGRICULTURE BUSINESS FOOD) - RTXYK04

Gaza-Sinai Tensions Limit Egypt-Hamas Cooperation

Tension between the Gaza Strip and the Sinai has prevented their respective governments from partaking in economic partnerships that could benefit both countries, writes Omar Shaban.

Sculptures are seen on a hill near the Israeli Syrian border in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights March 24, 2013. Israel said it fired into Syria on Sunday and destroyed a machinegun position in the Golan Heights from where shots had been fired at Israeli soldiers in a further spillover of the Syrian civil war along a tense front. Israel captured the Golan Heights in the 1967 Middle East war and annexed it in 1981 in a move not recognized internationally. REUTERS/Baz Ratner (MILITARY POLITICS) - RTXXW5G

Israel and Muslim Brotherhood Face the Same Enemy

As Israel prepares to celebrate its 65th Independence Day free of conventional threats, Iran's nuclear threat still looms, writes Alon Ben David.