Egypt pledges Saudi support as Sisi seeks troop powers

Egypt’s National Defense Council pledged support for Saudi Arabia on October 18 amid renewed fighting with Yemen’s Houthis, a day after President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi sought parliamentary authorization to deploy troops and military equipment abroad, RT reported.

The council, chaired by Sisi, committed to helping Saudi Arabia defend its security but did not identify the assistance Egypt would provide. The announcement does not establish that parliament has approved the request or that Egyptian forces have been dispatched.

Riyadh has been seeking help from allies following Houthi attacks on Saudi airports and oil infrastructure. The Houthis, an Iranian-backed movement, have demanded the lifting of Saudi restrictions on Yemeni airports and ports, presenting their attacks as retaliation for military operations in Yemen.

Renewed fighting and reported civilian casualties

The account traces the renewed confrontation to July, when Saudi-backed Yemeni government forces attacked Houthi-held Sanaa Airport, interrupting years of relative calm after a UN-brokered truce in 2022.

The Houthis subsequently launched missile attacks, announced a maritime blockade and took territory on Yemen’s Red Sea coast, including Mokhaa and islands in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait. Saudi Arabia intensified airstrikes and supported a counteroffensive by Yemen’s internationally recognized government.

Saudi authorities said Houthi strikes on King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh on October 10–11 killed at least 14 people and injured more than 300. Saudi-led forces struck oil storage facilities in Sanaa the following week.

On October 18, the Houthi-run Health Ministry said an airstrike on a house in northern Saada province killed at least nine people, including five children and two women, and wounded 19. The ministry blamed Saudi Arabia, which had not immediately commented. Separately, Saudi authorities said a Houthi projectile injured six people in a residential area of Najran province. These casualty figures and responsibility claims come from parties to the conflict, not independent verification.

Competing accounts of mediation

Houthi chief negotiator Mohamed Abdulsalam accused Riyadh of escalating the conflict and impeding mediation. He said Oman had proposed a five-day ceasefire to enable talks, and that the Houthis were willing to suspend attacks if Saudi Arabia met humanitarian demands that he did not specify.

A Saudi diplomat gave a different account the previous week, saying the kingdom had proposed talks in Oman in July but the Houthis declined to participate. The competing statements do not establish why negotiations failed or whether either side has accepted a current ceasefire proposal.