Parliament discussion on Tiran, Sanafir issue delayed

CAIRO – 24 May 2017: The Egyptian parliament has priority issues to discuss for the time being, which do not include the controversial maritime demarcation accord with Saudi Arabia, said the undersecretary of the Constitutional and Legislative Affairs Committee on Wednesday.

The committee is yet to schedule an appointment to discuss the handover of Tiran and Sanafir Red Sea islands to Saudi Arabia per the late 2016 accord, added the committee’s deputy head of Ahmed Helmy el-Sherif.

The parliamentarian explained that the parliament cannot discuss the accord without carefully studying the judicial rulings on the case.

Head of the Parliament’s Constitutional and Legislative Affairs Committee Bahaa Abu-Shaqqa had previously said that they are preparing for reviewing the agreement in light of the Egyptian constitution, emphasizing that hearings on Tiran and Sanafir will be broadcast live to the public.