CAIRO — The 74th session of the United Nations General Assembly that opened Sept. 19 stirred Turkish-Egyptian disputes once again and hit the headlines, after Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan attacked Egyptian President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi in his speech. Egypt fired back, which observers considered a renewal of an overt political dispute and a covert conflict over gas.

In his Sept. 24 speech, Erdogan attacked the Egyptian government and Sisi, accusing him of intransigence toward the family of ousted President Mohammed Morsi and called for punishing him. Erdogan pointed the finger at Sisi for killing innocent people and staging a coup against legitimacy, in reference to Morsi’s ouster.

The Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs blasted his speech and described Erdogan’s rule as oppressive and authoritarian. The Egyptian delegation at the UN submitted an official statement to the secretary-general and head of the General Assembly, protesting Erdogan’s speech. The statement described Erdogan’s speech as the lies and false allegations and accused him of supporting and funding terrorism.

In response, the Turkish Foreign Ministry criticized Egypt’s statement, saying it was filled with false allegations. It also mocked the accusations of the Turkish government.