Egypt - AL-MONITOR: The Middle Eastʼs leading independent news source since 2012

Egypt cover image

Egypt

July 16, 2026

Cairo 12:40 am

26°C

Turkish Defense Minister Yasar Guler and his Egyptian counterpart, Lt. Gen. Ashraf Salem Zaher, met at the Turkey’s Defense Ministry in Ankara, July 13, 2026.

Turkey, Egypt expand military ties with cooperation frameworks: What to know

Increasing defense cooperation between Ankara and Cairo comes as Turkey seeks to offset the expanding Greek-Cypriot-Israeli alignment in the Eastern Mediterranean.

ATLANTA, GEORGIA - JULY 07: Lionel Messi #10 of Argentina competes for the ball against Ramy Rabia #5 of Egypt during the FIFA World Cup 2026 Round of 16 match between Argentina and Egypt at Atlanta Stadium on July 07, 2026 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Buda Mendes/Getty Images)

Culture

'We have been cheated': Egypt slams FIFA after loss to Argentina

FIFA has faced scrutiny throughout the tournament over its video assistant referee, which overturned a goal that could have helped Egypt defeat the South American giant.

Egypt

Egypt loses to Argentina 3-2, bows out of World Cup after historic run

Egypt's Round of 16 appearance was the deepest run in the national team's World Cup history after three previous appearances ended in the group stage.

Latest News

Culture

Egypt, Morocco, Algeria make World Cup history in knockout stage

Alfredo ESTRELLA / AFP via Getty Images

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

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi attends during the closing session of the Arab Summit in Sharm el-Sheikh, in the South Sinai governorate, south of Cairo, March 29, 2015. Arab leaders at a summit in Egypt will announce the formation of a unified regional force to counter growing security threats, according to a draft of the final communique, as conflicts rage from Yemen to Libya. REUTERS/Amr Abdallah Dalsh - RTR4VBXG

Egyptian activist accuses Sisi of following in Mubarak’s footsteps

Human rights activist and lawyer Khalid Ali tells Al-Monitor that Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi’s regime is bowing to the conditions of global financial institutions to shore up his own position.

A security officer patrols the Giza Pyramids on his camel in Cairo, October 1, 2012. REUTERS/Mohamed Abd El Ghany (EGYPT - Tags: ANIMALS TRAVEL SOCIETY) - RTR38NTP

Egypt’s antiquities under constant threat

Archaeologists complain of a devastating and ongoing security failure as violations of Egypt’s most famous sites continue.

Women sit and look at a container ship navigate through the Suez canal near Ismailia port city, northeast of Cairo May 2, 2014. Egypt has extended the bidding deadline to July 3 in an international auction of 22 concessions for oil and gas exploration, an official with the state-owned gas company said on Wednesday.The previous deadline for companies to submit bids for concessions in the Suez Canal, Egypt's western desert, the Mediterranean sea and the Nile Delta had been May 19. REUTERS/Amr Abdallah Dalsh

Egypt to face mandatory maritime inspections

As Egypt has failed to undergo voluntary trial inspections of its maritime works, ports and ships, the International Maritime Organization's upcoming official inspections could negatively affect shipping in the Suez Canal.

A man and his children ride on the back of a pick-up truck with their luggage as they flee Saudi-led air strikes in Sanaa April 6, 2015. Foreign nationals were on their way out of Yemen on Monday (April 6) as 12 days of strikes by a Saudi-led coalition have failed to halt the advance of the Iran-allied Houthis and triggered a growing humanitarian crisis for residents in central districts now cut off from the mainland. REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah - RTR4W8WJ

Egypt's ambassador to Yemen won't rule out ground troops

In an interview with Al-Monitor, Egyptian Ambassador Youssef al-Sharqawy says that despite his country's participation in Operation Decisive Storm, it will not play a political role in resolving the conflict in Yemen.

Palestinian workers 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, said Hasayna, one of four

Will Qatar-Israel relations threaten PA’s relevance in Gaza?

Qatar’s engagement with Hamas and Israeli officials on Gaza reconstruction projects has provoked fears in the Palestinian Authority of a usurpation of its power.

A delegate looks at a model of a planned new capital for Egypt during the final day of Egypt Economic Development Conference (EEDC) in Sharm el-Sheikh, in the South Sinai governorate, south of Cairo, March 15, 2015. President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi was so confident after Egypt signed billions of dollars of deals at an investment summit that he publicly joked on Sunday about haggling with the world's top chief executives. Yet the real challenge has only just begun. REUTERS/Amr Abdallah Dalsh (EGYPT - Tags: BU

Will Egypt's new administrative capital help its economy?

Thoughtful planning and government management seem indispensable to a return on investments for Egypt.

Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir (C) shakes hands with his Egypian counterpart Abdel Fattah al-sisi and Ethiopian Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn after signing an Agreement on the Declaration of Principles on the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam Project in Khartoum March 23, 2015. The leaders of Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan signed a cooperation deal on Monday over a giant Ethiopian hydroelectric dam on a tributary of the river Nile, in a bid to ease tensions over regional water supplies. The leaders

Egypt warily signs preliminary Nile agreement

While showing some optimism about the Declaration of Principles it recently signed with Sudan and Ethiopia, Egypt is proceeding with caution concerning its historical water rights.

A souvenirs vendor waits for tourists in front of the Sphinx and the Giza Pyramids on the outskirts of Cairo, December 9, 2014. Egypt's tourism revenues jumped 112 percent to about $2 billion in the third quarter of 2014, a tourism ministry official said, suggesting the key industry was showing signs of recovery, albeit from a particularly bad third quarter last year. Tourism, an important source of foreign currency, has been hammered since the popular uprising that toppled Hosni Mubarak in 2011. REUTERS

Egypt imposes new restrictions on tourist visas

Citing national security, the Egyptian Foreign Ministry will no longer issue visas to individual travelers at ports of entry alarming Egypt's tourism sector.

Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal gestures during his interview with Reuters in Doha November 29, 2012. Meshaal said the de facto recognition of a sovereign Palestinian state won by his rival Mahmoud Abbas should be seen alongside Gaza's latest conflict with Israel as a single, bold strategy that could empower all Palestinians. Meshaal said the short war which claimed 162 Palestinian lives and five Israelis was concluded on terms set by the Palestinian Islamist movement and ended its isolation, creating a new moo

Hamas hopes to expand regional relations

Hamas is seeking to expand its regional relations, namely with Egypt, which is seemingly trying to ease tensions with the movement.

Workers clear debris outside a Vodafone branch following a blast, in Cairo February 26, 2015. One person was killed and five others wounded when five bombs exploded in different locations around Cairo on Thursday, security sources said. REUTERS/Mohamed Abd El Ghany (EGYPT - Tags: CIVIL UNREST BUSINESS TELECOMS) - RTR4R9L2

Egypt terror attacks fail to scare investors

The Revolutionary Punishment Movement claimed responsibility for bombing banks that participated in the Egypt Economic Development Conference on March 13-15, in what seems to be a failed attempt at crippling investments in Egypt.

A member of the special forces police stands guard in front of the Supreme Constitutional Court in Cairo, March 1, 2015, during a court session to determine if the House of Representatives parliamentary election law is constitutional. Egypt's Supreme Election Committee said on Sunday it was working on a "new timetable" for holding a parliamentary election. Earlier the Supreme Constitutional Court had ruled that an article related to a law defining electoral districts was unconstitutional, opening the way fo

Egypt challenges court ruling on Hamas 'terrorism'

In what seems to be a commitment to preserving its regional political interests and backing the Palestinian cause, Egypt is scrambling to challenge a court ruling that deemed Hamas a terrorist entity.

A police officer stands guard in front of the Bardo Museum in Tunis March 24, 2015. The national museum reopened on Tuesday, almost a week after a militant attack which killed 20 foreign visitors. REUTERS/Zoubeir Souissi - RTR4UMIW

The Islamic State in Africa

The Islamic State presence in the depth of the African continent was strengthened after Nigerian movement Boko Haram pledged allegiance to the terrorist group.