On April 9th, the Egyptian Cabinet announced that the Islands of Tiran and Sanafir were within the borders of the kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
The islands are located between the Arab and Sinai Peninsula, with Tiran and Sanafir at 88 SqKM and 30 SqKM, respectively. The statement claimed that, based on a presidential decree in 1990 the islands were part of Saudi Arabian territorial seas. The islands were said to have been given to the Egyptian government in 1950 so that Egypt could protect its borders, in the midst of aggressions with Israel.
However, since this declaration many others have issued statements in contradiction and others in support. The Ministry Of State For Environmental Affairs confirmed on its website that the islands of Tiran and Sanfir were part of the natural protectorates of South Sinai, and that Tiran is 6 Km from Sinai’s east coast. And so was a strategic part of it’s borders.
Another statement issued by politician and Professor of political science Amr Hamzawey was that the islands were not a part of Egypt’s territories due to presidential decree number 27 on maritime borders. But he also added that the government should have practiced transparency and reviewed the public opinion before acting.
While another claim by Major General AbdelMoneim Saeed in Wael El Ebrashy’s “10 Masa’an” adds that the islands of Sanafir and Tiran are 100% Egyptian and not Saudi Arabian, and he backs this claim by stating that he worked there himself in the 1955. And still others, Lamis El Hadidy the TV presenter said that the Egyptian Army would not let go of the land.
With all the disputes, Egyptians are left wondering who owns the islands and who has the prior claim.