Egypt Supports Saudi-Led Counter-Terror Coalition

Egypt supports any efforts by Islamic countries to counter terror and is intending to join them, an Egyptian Foreign Ministry spokesman said Tuesday, commenting on the new Riyadh-led coalition to fight terrorism.

CAIRO (Sputnik) – Earlier in the day, local media reported that Saudi Arabia had set up a 34-member coalition to counteract terrorism.

"There is no contradiction between the Islamic coalition and the suggestion to create a united Arab force [suggested by Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Sisi]," Ahmed Abu Zeid told reporters.

"The first is supposed to work on a larger territory to fight terror, the other in the framework of the Arab world, fighting everything all that threatens Arabs’ security," Zeid added.

Besides Saudi Arabia, the alliance includes Jordan, the United Arab Emirates, Pakistan, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Benin, Turkey, Chad, Togo, Tunisia, Djibouti, Senegal, Sudan, Sierra Leone, Gabon, Somalia, Guinea, the Palestinian National Authority, the Union of the Comoros, Cote d'Ivoire, Kuwait, Lebanon, Egypt, Libya, Maldives, Morocco, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria and Yemen.

Ten other Islamic countries have expressed their support for the newly created coalition.