Egypt's House of Representatives held a 15-minute procedural sitting on Thursday, after which it was decided that MPs hold their next meeting on 1 November.

Parliament Speaker Ali Abdel-Aal told MPs that the government referred seven presidential decrees on foreign agreements to the House. "The House's Constitutional and Legislative Affairs Committee will meet to discuss the decrees," he said.

The majority of the decrees concern agreements with the US about improving basic education methods, health services and science and techonology. Other agreements focus on economic cooperation with the United Arab Emirates and the Arab Monetary Fund.

Abdel-Aal asked that the two presidential decrees on the adjourning of parliament's fifth legislative season and the opening meeting of the sixth legislative season be read out. The two decrees were issued by President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi on Tuesday.

Abdel-Aal mourned the death of the emir of Kuwait Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Gaber Al-Sabah, saying the late emir did his best to serve the interests of Kuwait and the Arab and Islamic worlds.

Egypt's two-stage parliamentary elections will be held between 21 October and 8 December. A new 596-member House of Representatives will be elected.

The tenure of the current parliament will expire on 9 January 2021.