Egypt Authorizes Military Support for Saudi Arabia as Houthi Attacks Escalate

Egypt's parliament has authorized the country's military to provide support to help defend Saudi Arabia, Reuters reported on October 26, 2026. The decision followed an escalation in attacks on Saudi Arabia by the Houthis, an armed group in Yemen.

At least two-thirds of the members of parliament backed the measure, according to the same report. Parliamentary approval is the step that gives the military legal authority to act, and the vote was reported as a plan rather than a completed deployment.

Egypt will commit forces for defensive purposes only, The New York Times reported. Cairo has also ruled out strikes on Yemen as part of the support, Al Jazeera said.

The Houthi attacks have been intensifying over recent months. In July, Saudi Arabia invited dozens of countries to help protect shipping in the Red Sea, which runs between Africa and the Arabian Peninsula, amid Houthi attacks on vessels, The New York Times reported. In mid-October, the Houthis struck a desert camp in central Yemen and killed dozens of Yemeni soldiers, according to a report from The New York Times.

Egypt is not new to this conflict. It contributed air and naval support from the start of the last Saudi-led military intervention against the Houthis, The New York Times reported earlier this month. The current measure concerns a renewed commitment rather than a first one, and the forces it would involve have been described only in defensive terms.