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

Egypt’s parliament is convening on Sunday after President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi requested an emergency session to approve defensive military aid to Saudi Arabia, if Riyadh asks for support in its war with Yemen’s Houthis.

The request comes as the Iran-backed armed group continues attacks on Saudi Arabia, including the capital, Riyadh, and its airports and oil facilities.

El-Sisi declared that Egypt will “carry out any measure to protect” Saudi Arabia, in a speech on Saturday, but said that he “hopes” the parliament will give him authorisation to proceed.

On Sunday, Egypt said it would provide “all necessary and possible support to Saudi Arabia to defend its safety and stability”. The National Defence Council, chaired by President el-Sisi, said it “stands fully with” Saudi Arabia to defend its resources, territorial integrity and Islamic holy sites.

But what would Egyptian assistance look like? And what capacity does it have to “protect” Saudi Arabia in its war with the Houthis?

Here is what we know.

What’s behind el-Sisi’s decision to offer help to Saudi Arabia?

Saudi Arabia has long been a strategic and economic partner of Egypt, and el-Sisi said in a statement last month that Saudi security is “integral” to Egypt’s security.

Political analyst and Gulf studies expert Thomas Bonnie James told Al Jazeera that the Houthi security threat to the kingdom is one of the “converging” pressures that have led to this decision. The other one, is economics.

“Houthi pressure on [Bab] al-Mandeb threatens the Suez Canal, which Egypt’s foreign minister says has lost about $11bn since the attacks began in 2023,” he said, referring to Houthi attacks on Israeli-linked ships passing through the narrow strait, carried out in solidarity with Gaza.

James suggested that the decision is also important to Cairo, because “millions of Egyptians live and work in Saudi Arabia, which is Egypt’s largest single source of remittances. An Egyptian resident was killed, and others were injured in the attacks on Riyadh’s airport.”

He also said that Egypt does not want to be seen as the regional ally that “stood aside while others defended the kingdom,” as Turkiye and Pakistan have made their own pledges after activating the Mecca defence pact signed in August amid the deteriorating security situation in the Middle East.

What’s the latest on the Yemen war?

Hostilities in Yemen continue to escalate. Two air raids by the Saudi-led coalition hit Hodeidah in the southwest on Sunday.

Saudi forces also intercepted drones near Riyadh and Eastern provinces. The capital’s King Khalid international airport has come under attack at least 20 times since fighting flared between the internationally recognised government and the Houthis, also known as Ansar Allah – Arabic for Supporters of God.

The Saudi-backed forces are fighting the Houthis on several fronts, including Taiz and Marib, and some analysts argue the Houthis are stretched thin after their summer gains.

But James told Al Jazeera “that defeating them outright is a tall order”.

“Ground forces backed by air power can retake the coastline; stopping missiles launched from the mountains is much harder,” he said.

When will the Egyptian parliament convene?

They will be convening on Sunday at 1pm local time (10am GMT).

Under the Egyptian law, the President cannot declare war or send the military on foreign missions without the approval from the parliament.

For the authorisation to be granted, at least two-thirds of the politicians in the House of Representatives must vote in favour of the proposal.

Does Egypt have security cooperation with Saudi Arabia?

Not exactly. Egypt and Saudi Arabia have not signed a formal bilateral or multilateral pact on defence cooperation. But Cairo has a long history of cooperation with Riyadh.

Egypt is a founding member of the Multinational Maritime Defense Coalition, which Saudi Arabia launched in July. It aims to protect shipping in the Red Sea and Bab al-Mandeb – territories on Yemen’s coastline. Houthis captured towns and cities near Bab al-Mandeb last month, but the internationally recognised government has since wrested control of some of the areas from the Iran-backed group.

Egypt also participated in joint military exercises with Saudi Arabia in 2024.

Cairo was also part of a 2015 coalition, cobled together after the Houthi group captured large areas of north and western Yemen, including the capital Sanaa in September 2024. Egypt contributed naval and air forces to help secure maritime corridors in the Red Sea against the Houthis.

But James, the Gulf studies expert, told Al Jazeera that what el-Sisi is proposing is different from the maritime defence coalition Egypt recently joined.

“He is hoping for authorisation to deploy Egyptian forces to help defend Saudi territory itself,” he said. “It would move Egypt from a multilateral maritime framework to a bilateral military commitment.”

What will be the nature of Egyptian assistance to Saudi Arabia?

El-Sisi explicitly said that he is only proposing “defence” and that he isn’t “speaking in order for us to fight anyone or attack anyone”.

Military Defence Analyst Alexandru Hudisteanu said that the use of counter-drones and anti-missile support is a high probability if the decision is authorised.

“It would be the most urgent need at this point to make sure that the defence of Saudi Arabia is backed up and reinforced,” he told Al Jazeera.

Simultaneously, he added that the request itself is also a strategic move of deterrence.

“We know Saudi Arabia has one of the most prolific militaries out there in terms of capacities and capabilities. It’s a matter of the territory which Saudi Arabia needs to cover at any given moment,” Hudisteanu said.

James said that any contribution by Egypt would focus on the protection of Saudi territory, using “air and missile defence around critical infrastructure, intercepting drones, naval escort and intelligence sharing”.

James said that it is unlikely Egypt will deploy troops to Yemen’s front lines.

In the 1960s, former Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser deployed tens of thousands of troops in the Yemen Civil War. Saudi Arabia backed the rival side. Egypt suffered heavy casualties and Saudi-Egyptian ties were strained.

“What Egypt will not want is to send troops into Yemen. Nasser’s intervention there in the 1960s sends a clear message: defend the kingdom, don’t take ownership of Yemen,” he told Al Jazeera.