Egypt took a hard line against Iran this week, describing its attacks on the Arab Gulf countries as a “serious threat to international peace and security”.
In a telephone call with the president of the UAE on Sunday, President Abdel-Fattah Al-Sisi reiterated Egypt’s condemnation of Iran’s retaliatory attacks and its full support for the UAE in all the measures it takes to preserve its sovereignty, security, and the safety of its residents.
Member of the Egyptian Council for Foreign Affairs and former assistant foreign minister Mohamed Hegazy said that Al-Sisi’s call with Mohamed bin Zayed is the second in a week.
“In the first week of the war, Egypt called for dialogue and urged Iran not to antagonise the Arab countries, but now with Iran escalating its military attacks against the Arab Gulf countries, particularly the UAE, Egypt has decided to take a tough position against Iran,” Hegazy said.
He said that Iran’s escalation against the Arab Gulf countries and the UAE came just one day after Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian had apologised for the attacks and announced that Iran’s interim leadership council had approved stopping missile strikes against neighbouring countries.
“But Iran’s attacks against the Arab Gulf countries increased after Pezeshkian’s statement, with Iran launching more than 1,400 attacks against the UAE alone in a few days,” Hegazy said.
He added that Egypt and the UAE have a strategic relationship and that the UAE, alongside other Arab Gulf countries, is investing heavily in Egypt. “Iran’s attacks are strongly condemned not only because of brotherly relations with the Arab Gulf countries, but also due to their economic and security implications for Egypt and the entire region,” he said.
In a telephone call with French President Emmanuel Macron, Al-Sisi condemned Iran’s targeting of Arab countries at a time when the Gulf states and other regional parties are keen to reduce tensions, mediate between Tehran and Washington, and seek a diplomatic solution to the Iranian nuclear issue.
At an Iftar banquet at the Police Academy in Cairo on Sunday, Al-Sisi said the Middle East region is passing through very difficult times, expressing his hope that the current Iran war will end as soon as possible and that its effects will not harm regional countries and their citizens.
“I warn that if this war continues, it could lead to an economic crisis at both the regional and international levels, especially given the anticipated rise in oil prices,” Al-Sisi said.
Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty renewed Egypt’s condemnation of Iran’s attacks on the Arab countries and stressed his rejection of any “pretexts” to legitimise them. He denounced “all provocative Iranian actions and measures aimed at closing the Strait of Hormuz, disrupting international navigation, or threatening freedom of navigation in the Bab Al-Mandab and international waters.”
He said that any attempt by Iran to impede legitimate passage and freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz would jeopardise the stability of the Arab Gulf region and its vital role in the global economy and energy supplies, as well as international peace and security.
Abdelatty termed Iran’s provocations against the Arab Gulf countries as “reckless” and harmful to regional security, and he spoke by telephone with the foreign ministers of Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Oman, Kuwait, and Bahrain to affirm Egypt’s full solidarity with them.
In his speech before an emergency meeting of the Arab League on Sunday, Abdelatty expressed Egypt’s “full solidarity with the Gulf states, Jordan, and Iraq in the face of Iranian aggression”, stressing “the categorical condemnation and complete rejection of these attacks and any pretexts to justify them”.
He noted the importance of emphasising Arab national security to protect Arab countries’ sovereignty, pointing to the need to activate frameworks for joint Arab cooperation to deal with existing threats, including the formation of a joint Arab force.
“This force is important at this critical time to help protect Arab national security,” Abdelatty said, adding that stronger mechanisms for collective Arab coordination are required to address threats effectively.
Egypt also blasted Israel for its continued aggression against Lebanon. Abdelatty welcomed the Lebanese cabinet’s decision regarding an immediate ban on all security and military activities by the Iran-sponsored militia Hizbullah, considering them to be illegal and in violation of state sovereignty.
In a telephone call with Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam on Saturday, Abdelatty stressed Egypt’s categorical rejection of Israel’s targeting of Lebanon’s sovereignty, unity, and territorial integrity.
Abdelatty also discussed developments in the Iran war in a telephone call with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
According to Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Tamim Khallaf, the call was part of Egypt’s intensive efforts to reduce the escalation in the Middle East region. “Abdelatty told Rubio that Egypt prioritises dialogue to solve the current conflict, but at the same time it supports the Arab countries against Iran’s attacks, as well as the sovereignty and independence of Lebanon against Israeli aggression,” Khallaf said.
Rubio commended Egypt’s contribution to the evacuation of the citizens of several foreign countries through Egyptian territory for humanitarian reasons.
Khallaf announced that the US has restored its travel advisories for Egypt to what they were before the Iran war and removed its name from the list of countries that it had called upon its citizens to leave.
Intensive contacts with friendly and partner Western countries have resulted in “maintaining the [earlier] travel advisories issued by a number of countries regarding Egypt, including the United States, Canada, and Ireland,” he said.
He added that the US published an update on 3 March that maintains the travel advisories for Egypt at the same level as before the recent military escalation, “reflecting the security that Egypt enjoys despite the surrounding regional challenges.”
Ambassador Hegazy believes that the American move is not just a technical amendment to the travel guidelines, but carries political, security, and diplomatic significance.
“It sends a message that Egypt remains stable and safe despite the turmoil in the region, and it also reveals a Western understanding of the Egyptian position and an appreciation of its pivotal role in managing crises in the region,” he said.
Rubio’s reference to Egypt as a main centre for evacuating foreigners in the event of a worsening regional situation also reflects confidence in the infrastructure, organisational capacity, and stability of the Egyptian state.
Following Rubio’s call with Abdelatty on Saturday, the US Embassy in Cairo announced on Sunday that veteran diplomat Robert Silverman has been recalled to the diplomatic service to head the US Embassy in Cairo as its charge d’affaires at a critical juncture for both Egypt and the US.
The appointment of Silverman came after the recall of former US ambassador to Egypt Herro Mustafa Garg in December amid a Trump administration shakeup that ended the overseas postings of 30 senior diplomats who had served under the Biden administration.
According to a US Embassy in Cairo statement, Silverman joined the US diplomatic corps to gain firsthand knowledge of the Middle East. He studied Arabic at Princeton University in the US and then continued his studies during a graduate year at the American University in Cairo.
He served at US embassies throughout the Middle East, including the US Embassy in Cairo, where he developed a friendship with the late Egyptian playwright Ali Salem and translated his book A Drive to Israel into English in 2002 with Salem’s permission.
* A version of this article appears in print in the 12 March, 2026 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly
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