CAIRO: Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty has called for an immediate halt to attacks targeting Saudi Arabia, reaffirming Cairo’s full solidarity with the Kingdom and describing the assaults as unjustified and unacceptable.
Abdelatty made the remarks during a telephone conversation on Tuesday with his Iranian counterpart, Abbas Araghchi, amid heightened regional tensions following recent Houthi attacks on Saudi territory.
Egyptian Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Ambassador Nader Zaki, said Abdelatty had stressed the need to end the attacks, warning of the consequences of continued escalation for regional and international security.
The minister also emphasized the importance of pursuing political and diplomatic solutions, urging a return to negotiations between Iran and the US as the only viable means of resolving their differences and preventing further instability in the region.
Separately, Abdelatty met Gulf Cooperation Council Secretary-General Jasem Mohamed Albudaiwi on Tuesday, with both officials condemning the recent attacks on Saudi Arabia and reaffirming their support for the Kingdom’s security, stability, sovereignty and territorial integrity.
According to an Egyptian Foreign Ministry statement, the two sides emphasized the need to strengthen joint Arab action and enhance coordination to address threats to regional security.
They also underscored the importance of respecting state sovereignty and prioritizing diplomatic solutions to regional crises.
Former Egyptian Foreign Minister Mohamed El-Orabi told Arab News that Cairo’s position on the attacks remained unequivocal.
“The Houthi attacks targeting Saudi Arabia and endangering civilian lives are completely unacceptable,” he said.
El-Orabi accused the Houthis of advancing Iranian interests, arguing that the militia had become increasingly rejected across the Arab world, including in Yemen.
In a separate interview with Bloomberg, Abdelatty reiterated Egypt’s commitment to supporting Saudi Arabia, saying Cairo was prepared to respond to the Kingdom’s requests and provide unconditional assistance.
The Egyptian minister also reaffirmed Cairo’s solidarity with Riyadh during a meeting on Tuesday with Sultan bin Abdulrahman Al-Marshad, CEO of the Saudi Fund for Development.
Ambassador Rakha Ahmed Hassan, a former Egyptian assistant foreign minister, told Arab News that Cairo had intensified its diplomatic efforts in recent days to bring an immediate end to attacks threatening Saudi security and civilian lives.
He warned that continued hostilities and further escalation could have catastrophic consequences for the region.
The diplomatic efforts followed a joint statement on Monday by the R4 grouping of Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Pakistan and Turkiye, which strongly condemned the ongoing Houthi attacks against the Kingdom.
The group specifically denounced attacks targeting King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, which it said had caused civilian deaths and injuries and damaged civilian infrastructure.
The four countries described the attacks as a flagrant violation of international law and Saudi Arabia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.
They warned that the escalation posed a direct threat to the Kingdom’s security, stability and civilian population, stressing that such actions could not be justified or accepted under any circumstances.