Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi held meetings in Egypt on Thursday as part of a broader Middle East tour meant to solidify opposition to Israel’s self-defense operations against Iranian-backed terror organizations that saw him stop in Jordan on Wednesday and includes a planned visit to Turkey by the end of the week.
Since last week, Araghchi has held meetings with senior officials in Lebanon, Syria, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Iraq, and Oman, in addition to Jordan and Egypt, that the Iranian government has stated are meant to unite Muslim countries against Israel’s operations to protect its civilians from Hamas, Hezbollah, the Yemeni Houthi terrorists gang, and other Iran-backed jihadists. Israel declared war on Hamas – prompting operations against its allied jihadist groups – on October 8, 2023, a day after Hamas invaded Israel from Gaza and engaged in a murder, rape, abduction, and torture spree unprecedented in modern Israeli history. About 100 hostages taken on October 7 are believed to remain in Hamas captivity in Gaza.
Iran has offered Hamas full-throated support, celebrating the anniversary of October 7 as a glorious moment in Palestinian history it refers to as the “al-Aqsa Flood.” It has also repeatedly bombed Israel in support of its terror proxies, most recently in early October. Tehran is preparing for a projected military response from Israel, in part by touring the region seeking support against Jerusalem.
In Egypt on Thursday, Araghchi was received by strongman President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, who reportedly used his meeting with the Iranian diplomat to discourage Tehran from continuing to antagonize Israel.
“A comprhensive region-wide war will have grave consequences for the security and future of every nation and every pople in the area,” Sisi warned Araghchi, according to the Emirati newspaper the National.
Iranian media coverage of the encounter omitted any lecturing from Sisi, instead highlighting that Sisi “shared Egypt’s stance and concerns regarding the situation” and “called for the deployment of all available resources to stop the aggression and violence in Gaza and Lebanon,” where Israel has been targeting the leadership of the Iran-backed terrorist organization Hezbollah.
Egypt maintains sour ties with both Iran and Israel and it is the only country outside of Israel sharing a border with Gaza, placing it in a uniquely unproductive position, though it has taken on a role as mediator in the ongoing war. The Egyptian government has adamantly refused to take in Palestinian refugees from Gaza, dooming them to be used as human shields by Hamas, and has proposed “peace deals” that would ultimately fail to dismantle Hamas as a terror organization, a core war goal of Israel’s.
On the other hand, Egypt has suffered tremendously from the effects of the piracy in the Red Sea and Bab el-Mandeb Strait near Yemen, where Iran’s Houthi proxy terror group has launched a war against global commercial shipping. The Houthis have attacked dozens of ships, seemingly at random, resulting in plummeting traffic and toll revenue at Egypt’s lucrative Suez Canal.
Araghchi was the first Iranian foreign minister to visit Egypt in over a decade.
In Jordan, Araghchi met with King Abdullah II who, like Sisi, has enthusiastically rejected the idea of giving safe refuge to Palestinian civilians and has aggressively condemned Israel for going after Hamas terrorists. Jordan is also believed to have been among the nations quietly aiding Israel in deflecting an Iranian missile attack in June, however, and has traditionally maintained friendly ties with the West.
King Abdullah flatly told Araghchi that Iran needs to understand Jordan “will not be a theater for regional conflicts” during the latter’s stop in Amman on Wednesday. Like Sisi, Abdullah reportedly emphasized “the need for regional de-escalation” rather than extending support for Iran in its proxy war with Israel.
“Although Jordan and Iran have diplomatic relations, the kingdom has not had an ambassador in Tehran for years because of Amman’s objections to Iranian action in the region,” the National observed.
Similarly to his meetings in Cairo, the Iranian state media version of Araghchi’s meeting in Amman suggested the foreign minister and the king focused on condemning Israel.
“In his meeting with HM King Abdullah II, FM Araqchi shared Iran’s perspectives about critical security situation as the result of Israeli regime’s incessant transgressions and atrocities against Gaza and Lebanon,” Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Esmaeil Baqaei told reporters.
Araghchi is expected to receive a much warmer reception in Turkey. Turkey’s government under Islamist President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has loudly supported Hamas, even in the immediate aftermath of October 7. Erdogan has repeatedly stated, “Hamas is not a terrorist organization,” and organized a massive rally in support of the jihadists in October 2023. Erdogan has also allowed Hamas to maintain an office in Turkey since 2011 and has boasted of offering medical care to wounded Hamas jihadists.
On Tuesday, Israeli authorities accused the Hamas cell in Turkey of supervising a failed suicide attack in Tel Aviv.
“The findings of this investigation clearly indicate the establishment of Hamas headquarters in Turkey and their extensive efforts abroad to incite violence and carry out bombings in Israel,” Israeli Police and the Shin Bet security service said in a joint statement.
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