Egypt has renewed warnings that Israel’s military operations in Gaza and the wider region could undermine the peace treaty that has bound the two countries for nearly five decades. The statement came amid mutual media accusations of violations of the 1979 Camp David peace agreement.
Speaking at a UN Security Council session on the Middle East late Tuesday, Egypt’s UN envoy Osama Abdel Khalek cautioned that Israel’s actions in Gaza “threaten a peace that has endured for five decades, with risks to the entire region that cannot be imagined.” He accused Israel of seeking to forcibly displace large parts of Gaza’s population through military pressure, starvation, and destruction of essential infrastructure, steps Cairo “completely rejects.”
The remarks followed similar warnings earlier this month from President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi at the Doha summit, where he stressed that Israel “must realize that peace cannot be achieved through military escalation, and that its reckless behavior will have dangerous consequences for international security.”
Egypt and Israel signed their landmark peace treaty on March 26, 1979, following the Camp David accords brokered by the United States. The agreement ended decades of conflict and set detailed security arrangements, particularly in the Sinai Peninsula.
Recent US media reports, however, suggested Israeli officials had expressed concern over Egyptian military deployments in Sinai, claiming they violated treaty restrictions that allow only light weaponry in some zones. Axios reported that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had even asked the Trump administration to pressure Cairo to scale back its forces. Egypt’s State Information Service dismissed the allegations, insisting all deployments were coordinated within the treaty framework and reiterating Cairo’s commitment to peace.
Former Deputy Foreign Minister Raouf Saad told Asharq Al-Awsat that Egypt’s stance reflects its firm rejection of any plan to displace Palestinians. He described Cairo’s messages as directed both at the Israeli public - warning that their government’s policies jeopardize their security - and at the Israeli leadership, which seeks to impose new realities on the ground “through killings, starvation, and forced displacement.”
Egypt, Saad added, views the current moment as a turning point and has escalated its rhetoric, including hints that peace itself could collapse, in an effort to halt Israeli plans. He suggested that possible Arab responses might include suspending the Abraham Accords.
Despite heightened tensions since the October 7 war, Cairo continues to act as a mediator between Israel and the Palestinians. Abdel Khalek reaffirmed before the Security Council that Egypt remains committed to de-escalation and is working with international mediators to secure a ceasefire in Gaza.
