Egypt Authorizes Military Support for Saudi Arabia Amid Escalating Conflicts

Industry Pulse News Desk · 2026-10-18

Cairo pledges military and strategic assistance to Riyadh as fighting intensifies with Houthi rebels in Yemen alongside fresh violence in the West Bank.

Egypt's National Defense Council, chaired by President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi, announced Sunday it will provide military support to Saudi Arabia following a sharp escalation in hostilities between Saudi-led coalition forces and Iran-backed Houthi militants in Yemen. The council committed to providing assistance to protect Saudi sovereignty while continuing diplomatic efforts to de-escalate regional tensions.

The deployment authorization coincides with worsening violence in northern Yemen, where an airstrike in Saada province killed at least nine people, including five children and two women. Local health officials said the strike targeted a residence in the Sahar district, leaving 19 others wounded. Houthi representatives blamed Saudi forces for the attack, which follows the end of a multi-year ceasefire in the country.

In a related incident along the border, a Saudi military helicopter gunship crashed near the southwestern city of Najran, killing both pilots on board. Saudi military officials attributed the crash to an operational technical malfunction, rejecting claims from Houthi insurgents that their forces had shot down the aircraft during ongoing combat operations.

Tensions also heightened in the occupied West Bank, where an American photojournalist required surgery for broken ribs and other injuries after an assault by masked Israeli settlers in the village of Abu Falah. U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee condemned the attack and called for the full prosecution of those involved, while local police confirmed an investigation into the violence.