The slogan “Bread, freedom, these islands are Egyptian” left hundreds of Egyptian young people behind bars as they protested the transfer of Tiran and Sanafir islands to Saudi Arabia in April. This very slogan, however, sparked cries of joy in the State Council Court as a ruling to keep the two islands under Egyptian sovereignty was announced June 21.

In a courtroom full of despair and frustration, a judge read his ruling, “The islands should remain part of Egyptian territory and within Egyptian borders; Egyptian sovereignty over the islands holds, and it is forbidden to change their status in any form or through any procedure for the benefit of any other state.”

The ruling gave back a sense of hope and optimism to those in attendance, who chanted “Long live justice!”

The administrative court, the judicial body exclusively competent to adjudicate disputes involving the state, issued a ruling June 21 annulling the maritime border demarcation deal between Egypt and Saudi Arabia, which stipulated the transfer of Tiran and Sanafir, located at the entrance to the Gulf of Aqaba, to Saudi territorial waters.