Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). AP
The move placed Cairo at the centre of a multi-layered regional diplomatic effort to de-escalate tensions at a time when official communication channels with Tehran were fragmented and key interlocutors had been eliminated.
The report said Egyptian intelligence officials opened direct communication lines with Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) as a negotiating partner after Israel killed Iran’s national security chief, Ali Larijani, who had been seen as a possible figure able to engage with the West.
Cairo’s five-day ceasefire proposal was intended as a confidence-building measure, creating a brief window for indirect negotiations and lowering the risk of further escalation, as Iran intensified retaliatory attacks on US military assets in Gulf countries.
The Egyptian initiative is part of a wider diplomatic track involving Arab and regional powers. Foreign ministers from Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Pakistan met in Riyadh to coordinate positions and explore ways to de-escalate tensions amid fears of a wider regional war.
The report noted that these diplomatic efforts had a direct impact in Washington. On Saturday night, US President Donald Trump issued an ultimatum to Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz within 48 hours or face strikes on its power plants. Two days later, he reversed course, putting the threatened strikes on hold and stating there were “major points of agreement” after talks with US envoys Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff continued late into Sunday.
Iran, however, dismissed the reports of progress. Parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf called the talks “fake news,” posting on X that “no negotiations have been held with the US” and that the claims were intended to manipulate financial and oil markets.
At the same time, Iran’s foreign ministry said it had received messages through “friendly countries” regarding a US request for talks but denied that any negotiations had taken place since the start of the war.
Spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei told the official IRNA news agency that while messages were received about US requests for negotiations, “no negotiations or talks with the United States” had taken place during the past 24 days.
The IRGC also denied any security talks with the US, stating that claims of “productive talks with Tehran” only reflected “a crisis in the American position” after Iran’s continued strikes on US forces in the region.
According to The Wall Street Journal, Trump’s shift on Monday followed a series of closed-door discussions mediated by Middle Eastern intermediaries, which gave US officials hope that a resolution might be possible. The Egyptian-led intelligence contacts provided a framework for de-escalation while formal negotiations stalled.
These intelligence efforts have run alongside public diplomacy led by Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty, who held a series of calls with regional and international counterparts on Monday and Tuesday to prevent “total chaos” in the Middle East.
He stressed that Egypt is closely working with partners to avoid a “point of no return,” warning of the broader economic and security risks of a prolonged conflict for the region and global markets.
Abdelatty’s diplomatic outreach is part of a wider Egyptian strategy, aligned with President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi’s recent visits to Gulf states, to strengthen Arab coordination and prioritize political solutions over military escalation.
Together, Egypt’s public diplomacy and the intelligence backchannel illustrate a dual-track approach: combining visible diplomacy with quiet mediation to maintain communication, reduce tensions, and create space for negotiations.
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