Egypt’s Sisi discusses regional challenges with Arab leaders

CAIRO – 16 April 2018: Egyptian President Abdel Fatah al Sisi discussed regional conflicts with several Arab leaders on the sideline of the 29th Arab Summit which kicked off earlier Sunday in Dhahran city, eastern of Saudi Arabia.

Egyptian president talked through the civil war in Yemen with President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, where both leaders discussed the possible solutions for the Yemen’s two and a year old ravaging civil war, said Presidential Spokesperson Bassam Rady.

Sisi vowed to continue his Egypt’s support for Hadi’s legitimate government and Yemen’s regional security. Egyptian president added that his country will contribute to ease the burdens of the civil war on the Yemeni people.

The Yemeni President hailed Egypt’s stance on the current unrest in his country, hoping to enhance the cooperation between the two Arab nations.

Yemen has been caught up in a lengthy domestic conflict that has killed more than 10000 Yemeni citizens since March 2015. The civil war broke out after Hadi’s interim government overthrow by the Houthis.

A Saudi-led military coalition was formed to join the war in against the Houthis since then, a war that is turning into one of the world’s worst humanitarian crisis along with the Syrian one.

Egyptian president has also discussed with his Lebanese counterpart Michel Aoun the means of cooperation between Egypt and Lebanon to face current regional threats, on top of them the current Syrian crisis.

Tunisian President Bji Caid Essebsi congratulated Sisi on his re-election for a second term, lauding Egypt's ability to regain its vital and effective regional role following the Egyptian government’s success to restore stability, preceded by years of political unrest.

A total of 16 leaders of the Arab countries met in Dhahran, eastern Saudi Arabia, to participate in the 29th Arab League summit on Sunday.

Recent developments in the regional affairs dominated leaders' speeches during the opening session on Sunday. The escalation in Syria after the U.S.-led air strikes against military targets belonging to the Syrian regime topped summit's agenda.

UN General Assembly António Guterres, African union commission chairperson Moussa Faki, and High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs Federica Mogherini attended the summit.