Ahmed Kamel – Egypt Daily News
Egypt’s House of Representatives is due to hold a roll-call vote on Monday, October 26, on whether to authorize President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi to send Egyptian forces to Saudi Arabia for a possible defensive mission. The proposal requires approval by two-thirds of the full membership of parliament. As of Sunday, the chamber had not approved the authorization.
The vote follows several closed parliamentary sessions devoted to the request. The first two sessions included lawmakers who abstained or withheld their positions, prompting renewed attention to parliamentary rules governing abstentions and the method of voting. The debate has been extended to allow members to speak before the chamber decides whether to grant the president the requested authority.
Under Article 325 of parliament’s internal regulations, a vote may be conducted by roll call if the speaker requests it, if at least 30 members submit a written request, or if the result of a show of hands or standing vote is unclear. In a roll-call vote, each member states one of three choices: approval, rejection or abstention. Members are not permitted to add comments when their names are called.
The rules also set out how an abstention must be recorded. Article 327 allows a member to abstain, provided that the member submits a written explanation before the end of the session. Article 328 says abstaining members are counted neither as supporting nor opposing the proposal. If the number of members who cast votes falls below the majority required to pass the measure, the vote must be postponed to another session. If the required majority is not reached at that later vote, the proposal is considered rejected.
The constitutional threshold is set out in Article 152 of Egypt’s Constitution. It states that the president, as commander-in-chief of the armed forces, cannot declare war or send troops on a combat mission beyond Egypt’s borders without first consulting the National Defence Council and securing approval from two-thirds of the House of Representatives. Article 130 of parliament’s rules requires such a decision to be considered in a secret, urgent session.
The current request follows President el-Sisi’s call for parliament to authorize him to take action to defend Saudi Arabia if the kingdom asks for help. The proposal has emerged as Saudi Arabia faces increased attacks attributed to Yemen’s Houthi movement. In public remarks, el-Sisi described any potential Egyptian action as defensive and linked it to the security of Saudi Arabia and the Gulf.
Egypt’s National Defence Council has expressed solidarity with Saudi Arabia and pledged “all necessary and possible forms of support” to protect the kingdom’s security and territorial integrity. Its public statement also emphasized diplomatic efforts to reduce regional tensions. It did not publicly set out operational details of a military deployment, such as the number of personnel, mission duration or specific duties.
The parliamentary debate has exposed differences among lawmakers over the scope of the proposed authorization. Some members have called for more information about the mission before voting. Others have argued that diplomatic engagement should remain the priority and have raised concerns about the potential consequences of military involvement in the conflict. Supporters of the proposal have described assistance to Saudi Arabia as a matter of regional security.
A previous parliamentary vote in 2020 also used a roll call on a proposal involving the deployment of Egyptian armed forces beyond the country’s borders. The present debate, however, concerns a separate request and a different regional situation. The legal requirement remains that the current authorization must receive the specified two-thirds approval before troops can be sent on a combat mission abroad.
Monday’s vote will determine whether the president receives parliamentary authorization under the terms presented to lawmakers. It will not, by itself, establish that troops have been deployed. Any actual mission would depend on the authorization’s scope and subsequent decisions, as well as the conditions set out by the Egyptian government. Until the vote takes place and its outcome is announced, the proposal remains under consideration.
