Egyptian parliament delays vote on military support for Saudi Arabia

Lawmakers adjourn second session as one party tells members to abstain over unclear commitment.

Egypt's President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi walks during his state visit at the National Palace in Kuala Lumpur on October 10, 2026 [Hasnoor Hussain/AFP]

Egypt’s parliament has delayed a vote on authorising its armed forces to support Saudi Arabia, which has come under increasing attack from the Iran-aligned Houthis in Yemen.

The vote has been adjourned to October 26, the House of Representatives said on Monday. The move prolongs the debate over Egypt’s role in the Yemeni conflict.

list 1 of 3 Yemen’s government says Houthis fired two missiles at Aden airport

list 2 of 3 US and Iran both claim control of Strait of Hormuz amid attacks on vessels

list 3 of 3 What help can Egypt offer Saudi Arabia in the war against the Houthis?

The opposition Egyptian Social Democratic Party said it had told its lawmakers to abstain.

The party said parliament had not been given enough information about the mission’s objectives, duration, cost, or the risks to Egyptian troops.

However, the party, which holds nearly a dozen seats, said most of its lawmakers support the measure, according to two members of parliament who spoke to the AFP news agency.

The parliament has been tasked with authorising President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi to approve any request from Saudi Arabia for defence assistance amid attacks on the kingdom by Yemen’s Houthis.

The call for support came after the Iran-backed rebel group attacked Riyadh’s international airport and the state oil company Saudi Aramco last week. Saudi authorities say 13 people were killed in the October 10 attack on the airport.

El-Sisi said on Saturday that Egypt would take “any measure” needed to protect its Gulf allies.

“I’m not talking about confronting or attacking anyone,” el-Sisi said. “We’re talking only about defence.”

After approval from the National Defence Council, chaired by el-Sisi, Egypt’s constitution requires a two-thirds parliamentary majority to send troops on a combat mission abroad. The council gave its approval on Sunday.

Egypt’s rocky economy

The Grand Imam of al-Azhar urged Arab and Muslim leaders on Sunday to mediate Egypt’s parliamentary decision and avert further bloodshed.

Saudi Arabia holds an important role in financing Egypt’s rocky economy. It is due to deposit $5.3bn into Egypt’s central bank this month, plus $267.39m in interest.

Egypt’s EGX30 stock index fell early on Monday amid concerns about possible military involvement but recovered to close 0.4 percent higher.

Nematallah Choucri, head of research at HC Securities, told the Reuters news agency that geopolitical developments are the main driver of recent market losses.

Egypt is also affected by the shortage of oil and gas exports from the Middle East due to the United States war on Iran and fighting in Yemen.

Egypt’s economy is heavily dependent on remittances from Egyptians working in the hydrocarbons industry in Saudi Arabia.

Political analyst and Gulf studies expert Thomas Bonnie James told Al Jazeera that the Houthi security threat to Saudi Arabia also threatens the Suez Canal , which Egypt’s foreign minister says has lost about $11bn since the Houthis launched attacks in the Bab al-Mandeb strait in solidarity with Gaza in 2023.

James also said Egypt does not want to be seen as the regional ally that “stood aside while others defended the kingdom”.

Turkiye and Pakistan have made their own pledges after activating the Mecca defence pact with Riyadh, signed in August, amid the deteriorating security situation in the Middle East.

由于一方议员因承诺不明确而要求其他议员弃权，议员们休会。

2026年10月10日，埃及总统阿卜杜勒·法塔赫·塞西在吉隆坡国家皇宫进行国事访问期间步行。[Hasnoor Hussain/AFP]

埃及议会推迟了关于授权其武装部队支持沙特阿拉伯的投票，沙特阿拉伯正遭受也门胡塞武装（伊朗支持的武装组织）日益猛烈的攻击。

众议院周一宣布，投票将延期至10月26日举行。此举将延长关于埃及在也门冲突中扮演角色的辩论。

也门政府称胡塞武装向亚丁机场发射了两枚导弹（共3条记录，此为第1条）

（共3条记录，此为第2条）美国和伊朗均声称控制霍尔木兹海峡，此前两国曾发生船只袭击事件。

问题 3（共 3 题）：埃及在打击胡塞武装的战争中能为沙特阿拉伯提供哪些帮助？

埃及反对党社会民主党表示，已指示其议员弃权。

该党表示，议会没有获得足够的信息，了解此次任务的目标、持续时间、成本或对埃及军队的风险。

然而，据法新社采访的两名议员透露，该党拥有近十几个席位，其大多数议员都支持这项措施。

议会的任务是授权总统阿卜杜勒·法塔赫·塞西批准沙特阿拉伯提出的任何国防援助请求，以应对也门胡塞武装对沙特王国的袭击。

在伊朗支持的叛军组织上周袭击了利雅得国际机场和沙特国家石油公司沙特阿美之后，各方呼吁给予支持。沙特当局称，10月10日发生的机场袭击事件造成13人死亡。

塞西周六表示，埃及将采取“任何必要措施”来保护其海湾盟友。

“我说的不是要对抗或攻击任何人，”塞西说。“我们只谈防御。”

根据埃及宪法，向海外派遣军队执行作战任务需要获得由塞西总统主持的国防委员会的批准。该委员会于周日批准了这项请求。

埃及动荡的经济

周日，爱资哈尔大伊玛目敦促阿拉伯和穆斯林领导人调解埃及议会的决定，以避免进一步流血冲突。

沙特阿拉伯在为埃及岌岌可危的经济提供融资方面发挥着重要作用。本月，沙特阿拉伯将向埃及中央银行存入53亿美元，外加2.6739亿美元的利息。

周一早盘，由于担心可能出现军事介入，埃及 EGX30 股指下跌，但随后反弹，最终收涨 0.4%。

HC Securities 研究主管 Nematallah Choucri 告诉路透社，地缘政治发展是近期市场下跌的主要驱动因素。

由于美国对伊朗发动战争以及也门战乱，中东石油和天然气出口短缺，埃及也受到了影响。

埃及经济严重依赖于在沙特阿拉伯油气行业工作的埃及人的汇款。

政治分析家兼海湾研究专家托马斯·邦尼·詹姆斯告诉半岛电视台，胡塞武装对沙特阿拉伯的安全威胁也威胁到苏伊士运河。埃及外交部长表示，自2023年胡塞武装为声援加沙而在曼德海峡发动袭击以来，苏伊士运河已损失约110亿美元。

詹姆斯还表示，埃及不希望被视为“在其他国家保卫王国时袖手旁观”的地区盟友。

在中东安全局势恶化之际，土耳其和巴基斯坦在启动了8月份与利雅得签署的《麦加防务条约》后，做出了各自的承诺。