Late Egyptian president Anwar Sadat will be awarded the US Congressional gold medal, the American embassy in Cairo said on Friday.

The embassy said that US President Donald Trump had signed into law an act giving the posthumous award to Sadat in recognition of his “heroic achievements and courageous contributions to peace in the Middle East.”

Sadat is the first Arab person to be awarded the medal.

He was jointly awarded the Nobel Peace Prize with Israel's Prime Minister Menachem Begin in 1978 after negotiations for a peace treaty were begun between the two countries.

The text of the US act notes that the late US President Ronald Reagan described Sadat as “a courageous man whose vision and wisdom brought nations and people together. In a world filled with hatred, he was a man of hope. In a world trapped in the animosities of the past, he was a man of foresight, a man who sought to improve a world tormented by malice and pettiness.”

The act further notes that, "President Sadat is recognized in the United States and throughout the world as a respected leader and champion of peace whose vision provided a roadmap for the peaceful resolution of conflict that endures nearly 40 years after its inception. President Sadat bravely reached out to Israel and dedicated himself to peace, furthering the national security of Egypt and the stability of the Middle East."

The Act concludes by noting that "the Camp David Accords and the Peace Treaty continue to serve the interests of the United States by preserving peace and serving as a foundation for partnership and dialogue in a region fraught with conflict and division."

Mohamed Anwar El-Sadat was the third president of Egypt, serving from 15 October 1970 until his assassination by Islamists fundamentalists on 6 October 1981.

He led Egypt to victory in the October War.

The war eventually led to Israeli forces withdrawing from the Sinai Peninsula on 25 April 1982 after 15 years of occupation, based on a peace treaty signed between Egypt and Israel in 1979.