Egypt and Saudi Arabia seek to restrain Israel’s Gaza push
Egypt and Saudi Arabia are holding talks to establish an Arab political umbrella that will restrain Israel’s expansionism in the Gaza Strip, according to Atalayar on August 26th.
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman visited Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi in Cairo, where the two leaders discussed various matters of mutual national interest, most notably the enduring question of Palestinian self-determination.
Cairo has exerted significant diplomatic efforts to put an end to Israel’s military campaign in Gaza. Egypt and Qatar jointly designed a ceasefire proposal, which is based on US envoy Steve Witkoff’s plan, that was promptly agreed upon by Hamas.
The proposal included the creation of a civil and social management committee for Gaza, that would be under the administration of the Palestinian Authority after the fighting ended.
Egypt also urged Israel to accept the proposal, which is near identical to the Witkoff plan that Tel Aviv accepted in May 2025. However, hawkish far-right Israeli ministers Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich have demanded that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejects the ceasefire.
In March, Egypt announced a plan to rebuild Gaza without the temporary displacement of Palestinians residing in the territory. The project was to be undertaken in coordination with the secretary general of the Arab League, the Palestinian Authority as well as various Arab states. The World Bank and the United Nations Development Programme were to supervise it.
The plan was to be executed as soon as a ceasefire was implemented. However, Israel has since confirmed that it will push ahead with plans to conquer Gaza city and subsequently displace thousands of Palestinians to the south of the territory, making it evident that only further destruction awaits.
In light of this unrelenting Israeli aversion to a political settlement, Egypt and Saudi Arabia are cooperating to develop a new diplomatic initiative which will form a regional political front that will place pressure on the United States and Israel to prevent any further escalation of the conflict.
During the “Two-State Solution” conference, El-Sisi reaffirmed his support for the Saudi plan, which advocates for peaceful coexistence between Israel and Palestine.
The Egyptian government’s official website states that “the leaders also stressed the need to ensure unimpeded access for humanitarian aid to the people of Gaza, the release of hostages and prisoners, and the rejection of any attempt to displace Palestinians from their land or impose Israeli military occupation in the Strip.”
Other Arab states share similar concerns over Israeli military expansionism, which was catalysed by Netanyahu’s recent declaration of commitment to achieving “Greater Israel,” which involves total annexation of the occupied Palestinian territories, alongside parts of Syria, Jordan and Egypt. Lebanon and Syria have already been the target of major incursions and airstrikes by the Israeli Defence Forces since October 7th 2023.
Atalayar, Amnesty International, Maghrebi.org, CNN
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