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Turkey Pushes for Normalizing Ties with Egypt after Nine Years of Tension

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu (Turkish Foreign Ministry)
Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu (Turkish Foreign Ministry)
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Turkey Pushes for Normalizing Ties with Egypt after Nine Years of Tension

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu (Turkish Foreign Ministry)
Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu (Turkish Foreign Ministry)

Turkey has decided to appoint an ambassador to Egypt after nine years of mutual withdrawal of ambassadors and downgrading the diplomatic representation to the rank of chargé d’affaires between the two countries.

The move follows Egyptian authorities confirming that Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry would soon be visiting Istanbul to meet his Turkish counterpart, Mevlut Cavusoglu.

Cavusoglu said that Turkey may appoint an ambassador to Egypt as part of the normalization of relations with Cairo.

The normalization of ties between Turkey and Egypt is vital for the Eastern Mediterranean, the top Turkish diplomat said Thursday in a televised interview.

Cavusoglu also said that a reciprocal reappointment of ambassadors is possible, and the will exists on both sides to normalize ties.

The Turkish minister revealed that Shoukry would visit Istanbul this month.

“I will meet the Egyptian Foreign Minister at an iftar in Istanbul, during the current Ramadan, if there is no emergency,” said Cavusoglu in a Tuesday speech during a meeting of Turkey’s ruling Justice and Development (AKP) party.

Despite saying that the meeting would take place soon, Cavusoglu did not specify an exact date for Shoukry’s visit.

Egypt’s relations with Turkey have been strained – with no shared ambassadors – since the 2013 ouster of Egypt’s late Islamist president Mohamed Morsi, who was backed by the government of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

The rift between the two countries then continued to widen, most notably when Turkey voiced its opposition to the 30 June Revolution of 2013 and its condemnation of Egypt’s judicial sentences against members of the Muslim Brotherhood, which Egypt designated a terrorist organization in 2013.

Egypt has also slammed Turkey for harboring members and leading figures of the Muslim Brotherhood and allowing them to voice their anti-Egyptian government rhetoric on Turkish TV channels.

In May and September 2021, Egypt and Turkey held two rounds of exploratory talks at the level of deputy foreign ministers in Cairo and Ankara to discuss restoring relations between them.

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Arab World

Remnants of Assad's Chemical Weapons Program Recovered, Syrian Official Says

FILE PHOTO: A member of the former rebel group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham stands guard near an image of Syria's Bashar al-Assad at the fourth division headquarters in Damascus, Syria, January 23, 2025 REUTERS/Yamam Al Shaar/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A member of the former rebel group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham stands guard near an image of Syria's Bashar al-Assad at the fourth division headquarters in Damascus, Syria, January 23, 2025 REUTERS/Yamam Al Shaar/File Photo
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Remnants of Assad's Chemical Weapons Program Recovered, Syrian Official Says

FILE PHOTO: A member of the former rebel group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham stands guard near an image of Syria's Bashar al-Assad at the fourth division headquarters in Damascus, Syria, January 23, 2025 REUTERS/Yamam Al Shaar/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A member of the former rebel group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham stands guard near an image of Syria's Bashar al-Assad at the fourth division headquarters in Damascus, Syria, January 23, 2025 REUTERS/Yamam Al Shaar/File Photo

Syria's transitional leadership has located remnants of former Syrian president Bashar al-Assad's clandestine chemical weapons program, including raw materials and munitions similar to those used to carry out deadly gas attacks during the country's long-running civil war, a Syrian official told Reuters on Tuesday.

Syrian authorities have also taken into custody 18 suspects for alleged involvement in Assad's chemical weapons program, including high-level military, political and technical officials, said Mohamad Katoub, Syria's permanent representative to the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) in The Hague, in an interview.

 

Arab World

Israeli Media Says Military Expands Ground Operations in Lebanon

The aftermath of an Israeli airstrike is seen in the southern Lebanese area of al-Hosh, near the coastal city of Tyre on May 26, 2026. (Photo by AFP)
The aftermath of an Israeli airstrike is seen in the southern Lebanese area of al-Hosh, near the coastal city of Tyre on May 26, 2026. (Photo by AFP)
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Israeli Media Says Military Expands Ground Operations in Lebanon

The aftermath of an Israeli airstrike is seen in the southern Lebanese area of al-Hosh, near the coastal city of Tyre on May 26, 2026. (Photo by AFP)
The aftermath of an Israeli airstrike is seen in the southern Lebanese area of al-Hosh, near the coastal city of Tyre on May 26, 2026. (Photo by AFP)

Israeli forces have begun operating beyond its so-called "Yellow Line" in south Lebanon, which runs around 10 kilometers (six miles) deep inside Lebanese territory, a military official confirmed to AFP on Tuesday. 

"The army is operating in a targeted manner beyond the Forward Defense Line in order to remove direct threats to the citizens of the State of Israel and Israeli troops, in accordance with the directives of the political echelon," the military official said when asked about reports that the military had begun ground operations beyond its demarcation line. 

"Specific details regarding soldiers' locations cannot be provided," the official added. 

Israeli troops have until now been operating inside an occupied self-declared "Yellow Line", where they have carried out large-scale demolitions despite a ceasefire in effect since April 17. 

Israel's left-leaning Haaretz newspaper and news site Ynet reported that troops had begun ground operations north of the Yellow Line in order to reduce the threat posed by Hezbollah's explosive drones. 

Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah have continued to exchange fire on a near-daily basis despite the ceasefire. 

Several strikes hit the southern Lebanese city of Nabatieh on Tuesday after an unprecedented Israeli evacuation warning, an AFP correspondent said, a day after at least 11 were killed in a strike in the country's east. 

Hezbollah meanwhile said it confronted Israeli troops trying to advance into a town that overlooks the city. 

Arab World

Tunisian President Blames Profiteering Networks for Rising Prices

Tunisians visit a livestock market as they prepare for Eid al-Adha, the Muslim feast of Sacrifice in the Ariana district near Tunis on May 25, 2026.(Photo by FETHI BELAID / AFP)
Tunisians visit a livestock market as they prepare for Eid al-Adha, the Muslim feast of Sacrifice in the Ariana district near Tunis on May 25, 2026.(Photo by FETHI BELAID / AFP)
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Tunisian President Blames Profiteering Networks for Rising Prices

Tunisians visit a livestock market as they prepare for Eid al-Adha, the Muslim feast of Sacrifice in the Ariana district near Tunis on May 25, 2026.(Photo by FETHI BELAID / AFP)
Tunisians visit a livestock market as they prepare for Eid al-Adha, the Muslim feast of Sacrifice in the Ariana district near Tunis on May 25, 2026.(Photo by FETHI BELAID / AFP)

Tunisia's presidency has blamed profiteering networks for the sharp rise in prices, which has become more acute ahead of Eid al-Adha.

Tunisians are facing mounting pressure from high sacrificial animal prices this year, despite a rainy season that ended five consecutive years of drought.

Markets are also witnessing an unusual increase in fruit and vegetable prices, prompting protests earlier this month over the rising cost of living and the erosion of purchasing power among broad segments of the population.

In a video published on its official Facebook page following a meeting between Tunisian President Kais Saied and security officials, the presidency said security forces had dismantled profiteering and hoarding networks in several regions of the country that had deliberately driven up prices "in an attempt to harm producers and consumers alike."

It added that this approach "represents a consistent state policy that will continue without hesitation until this criminal and outrageous rise in prices is completely eliminated."

Despite the security campaigns, prices in markets remained elevated on the eve of Eid al-Adha, including red meat prices, according to observations by a correspondent for the German Press Agency (dpa).

Tunisia's inflation rate stood at 5.5 percent in April, according to the latest official update, marking its highest level in about a year, and is expected to rise further this month.

The Tunisian General Labour Union (UGTT) had earlier warned of deteriorating purchasing power among Tunisians because of rising prices and the absence of effective policies for price monitoring and regulation.