Egypt’s Supreme Constitutional Court on Wednesday temporarily halted all courts rulings on the Red Sea islands agreement between Egypt and Saudi Arabia, to allow more room to study the case and issue a final and decisive verdict on it. A statement for the court said the Commissioners Authority of the court has recommended this suspension, as two different courts made different rulings on the case. According to the border demarcation deal signed in April 2016, the two islands are deemed to be within Saudi territorial waters, in recognition of historical claims on the part of Saudi Arabia. The Supreme Administrative Court, however, nullified this agreement on the basis that there was insufficient evidence of the Saudi claims. In a speech, President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi called on the Egyptian people not to talk about the matter anymore.

Source: Egypt Independent June 21, 2017 11:26 UTC