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

Egypt cover image

Egypt

June 20, 2026

Cairo 12:08 pm

30°C

This photo illustration taken in Damascus on May 20, 2026, shows the X account of Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa on a smartphone displaying his tweet to President Donald Trump.

Syria reports sabotage of undersea internet cable between Tartous and Alexandria: What to know

The affected cable connects Syria to Egypt and is one of four cables that link to the coastal city of Tartous.

KHALED DESOUKI/AFP via Getty Images

Suez Canal traffic soars as Hormuz disruptions reroute energy trade

The canal generated $419 million in revenue in April, up 27% year over year.

A photo of Karim Badawi, Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources, speaking at the high-level ministerial session of Baku Energy Week in the Azerbaijani capital.

Egypt, Turkey push energy ties in Azerbaijan talks amid Hormuz crisis

Egypt and Turkey are moving to deepen energy cooperation as Iran’s de facto blockade of the Strait of Hormuz disrupts Gulf energy flows, increasing the significance of Eastern Mediterranean energy infrastructure.

Latest News

Egypt rejects Syrian ambassador as ties strain under Sharaa

Syria's President Ahmed al-Sharaa (L) chats with Egypt's President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi as they arrive for a family photo after a working session of the European Council and regional partners as part of an informal meeting in Nicosia on April 24, 2026.

Explainer

UAE nuclear plant strike clouds Gulf's atomic ambitions: What to know

This aerial photograph taken on April 26, 2023 shows the construction of the Russian-built Akkuyu Nuclear Power Plant in Mersin Province. - Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will try to offset his absence from the campaign trail weeks before crucial elections by unveiling the nuclear plant by video link. (Photo by OZAN KOSE / AFP) (Photo by OZAN KOSE/AFP via Getty Images)

United Arab Emirates

Ethiopia accuses Egypt of obstructing Red Sea access bid: What to know

TO GO WITH STORY by Peter Martell: "Eritrea-economy-port": A couple of boats and two tug boats can be seen in Eritrea's Red Sea port of Massawa on November 18, 2007. Once one of East Africa's busiest ports, the town is still recovering after being badly bombed in 1990 during Eritrea's war of liberation from Ethiopia. The government is trying to revitalize the port, but efforts are hampered by a sluggish economy and threat of a renewed conflict with Ethiopia. AFP PHOTO/Peter MARTELL (Photo credit should read

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

A general view of the Blue Nile river as it passes through the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), near Guba in Ethiopia, on December 26, 2019. - The Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam, a 145-metre-high, 1.8-kilometre-long concrete colossus is set to become the largest hydropower plant in Africa.
Across Ethiopia, poor farmers and rich businessmen alike eagerly await the more than 6,000 megawatts of electricity officials say it will ultimately provide.
Yet as thousands of workers toil day and night to fin

Egypt lends helping hand to Sudan amid Nile dam talks

Amid the stalled negotiations over the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam, Egypt gives priority to winning over Sudan in the dam crisis.

A worker unloads iced freshly-caught fish off a fishing boat at a pier in the Egyptian town of Ezbet al-Borg along the Nile river delta's Damietta branch near the estuary into the Mediterranean sea, in the northern Governorate of Damietta, some 265 kilometres north of the Egyptian capital on October 22, 2019. (Photo by Khaled DESOUKI / AFP) (Photo by KHALED DESOUKI/AFP via Getty Images)

Egypt casts about for ways to protect fisheries from GERD effects

Egypt is concerned Addis Ababa’s controversial dam on the Blue Nile will harm its fish resources and is pursuing ambitious projects to protect the national resource.

Egyptian parliament members attend a general session in the capital Cairo on July 20, 2020. - Egypt's parliament greenlighted behind a closed-doors session later today, the possible deployment of troops in Libya to support Cairo's ally Khalifa Haftar, if rival Turkish-backed forces recapture the city of Sirte, the house said. (Photo by - / AFP) (Photo by -/AFP via Getty Images)

What messages did Egypt’s top military official carry to Libya’s Hifter?

The head of Egypt’s military intelligence agency visited military strongman Khalifa Hifter in Libya, coinciding with visits by Turkish and Qatari officials to the rival Tripoli-based government.

CAIRO, EGYPT - JANUARY 27: Locals look at newspapers carrying reports and pictures of street protests on January 27, 2011 in Cairo, Egypt. Thousands of police are on the streets of the capital and hundreds of arrests have been made in an attempt to quell anti-government demonstrations. (Photo by Peter Macdiarmid/Getty Images)

Egyptian news media warned not to criticize UAE-Israel deal

Cairo has reportedly instructed local media outlets not to publish content criticizing the recent UAE-Israel normalization deal in another blow to press freedom in the country.

TOPSHOT - This picture taken on March 13, 2020 shows an aerial view of ongoing construction development at Egypt's "New Administrative Capital" megaproject, some 45 kilometres east of Cairo. (Photo by Khaled DESOUKI / AFP) (Photo by KHALED DESOUKI/AFP via Getty Images)

How megaprojects mitigated COVID-19 impact on Egypt’s labor market

The coronavirus pandemic has increased the unemployment rate, but the impact could have been worse without the infrastructure overhaul.

South Sudan's Vice President James Wani Igga (L), Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi (C) and Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir attend a meeting in the Sudanese capital Khartoum on March 23, 2015 to sign the agreement of principles on Ethiopia's Grand Renaissance dam project. Egypt agreed to a preliminary deal with Ethiopia on a new dam project that Cairo feared would hamper the flow of the Nile, the river on which it depends. AFP PHOTO / ASHRAF SHAZLY (Photo credit should read ASHRAF SHAZLY/AFP

Egypt, Sudan kick off another round of Nile dam talks

A new round of meetings between the Nile Basin countries has resumed as Sudan and Egypt try to unite on controlling damage from the Ethiopian dam.

Nubian Egyptian women sell souvenirs in the village of Gharb Suhail near Aswan in Upper Egypt, some 920 kilometres south of the capital Cairo, on February 5, 2020. - The Nubian language, according to locals, is unpractised by many in the generation born decades after their mass eviction from their ancestral lands to make way for the construction of the Aswan High Dam on the Nile in the 1960s. Built under Egypt's late president Gamal Abdel Nasser, the colossal project aimed to harness the Nile's annual flood

Egypt shows interest in Nubian community after years of marginalization

The marginalized Nubian community is back at the forefront in Egypt with a boat race festival to preserve Nubian heritage, held for a second time in Aswan governorate.

This picture taken on July 1, 2020 shows a general view of (R to L) the Great Great Pyramid of Khufu (Cheops), the Pyramid of Khafre (Chephren), and the Pyramid of Menkaure (Menkheres) at the Giza Pyramids necropolis on the southwestern outskirts of the Egyptian capital Cairo, as the archaeological site reopens while the country eases restrictions put in place due to the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic. - A spree of openings in Egypt comes after the country officially ended a three-month nighttime curfew a fe

Egypt upgrades Giza Plateau to attract tourists back to Pyramids

The Egyptian authorities are advancing their plans to develop the Giza Plateau, where the Pyramids are located, as part of efforts to boost tourism.

Amazon seeks development of Egypt e-commerce market

Amazon is planning on expanding the services it provides to the promising Egyptian market in the field of e-commerce, but some obstacles might slow down growth in this sector.

Pope Francis waves at faithfuls from the window of the apostolic palace overlooking St.Peter's square during his Angelus prayer on August 15, 2020 at the Vatican. (Photo by Tiziana FABI / AFP) (Photo by TIZIANA FABI/AFP via Getty Images)

Pope Francis urges Egypt, Ethiopia, Sudan to resume Nile dam talks

The pope urged the three Nile states to "continue on the path of dialogue."

UAE-Israel peace deal causes Egyptians to reminisce about Arabs' lost opportunities for peace

Despite Egypt being the first Arab country to sign a peace treaty with Israel in 1979, analysts in Egypt do not share President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi's enthusiasm about the recent Emirati-Israeli peace deal. Some have denounced it as "a betrayal" of the Palestinian cause while others reminisce about Arabs' "lost opportunities" for peace.

Why did Hifter's forces host Libyan army celebration in Cairo?

The presence of senior government figures and military leaders from Egypt and Libya at the Libyan National Army anniversary in Cairo clearly shows that Egypt and its army will always have Libya’s back against Turkish influence.