The government of President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi confirmed that the fire on July 29 on 2 gas tankers at Damietta port, including 1 US-owned ship, was caused by an attack by drones.
This is the first attack targeting Egypt since the Middle East conflict broke out.
In his first statement about the attack on July 29, President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi warned about the "risk of escalation in the region" when talking by phone with Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez.
Egyptian authorities are investigating the attack, after "technical teams boarded the ship and checked the remaining debris of the UAV. Security agencies are analyzing and researching to definitively determine the origin of the UAV," Egyptian Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly said.
At a press conference on July 30, Prime Minister Madbouly detailed the events of July 29, in which the Prime Minister's office received a notice at 2:20 pm about 2 ships catching fire at Damietta port.
The two ships were identified as the US-owned Energos Winter storage and recharging ship and the GasLog Salem oil tanker. The two ships were connected, then separated and pulled out to sea due to concerns that "an explosion could affect the entire port".
Mr. Madbouly informed that after the attack, the gas tanker was "completely intact", while the other ship was partially damaged.
Egypt has not accused any party of the attack. At a press conference on July 30, Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly noted that there have been "supulations and opinions, but the state does not rely on unfounded speculations or theories".
No party has claimed responsibility for the UAV attack on Egypt. This attack is similar to others that targeted its allies in the Gulf and Arab regions during the US-Israel and Iran conflict.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi wrote on X on July 30 that Egypt is an "important friend and partner in the region". He also said that the attack on Egypt was a false Israeli campaign. Houthi forces in Yemen denied involvement, calling Houthi attacks on Egypt "baseless rumors".
Egypt has played a role in conflict reconciliation for months. On July 30, Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty had phone calls with his counterparts in Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Jordan and Kuwait, in which he also called for "reducing escalation" along with "diplomatic and political solutions".
Egypt's sea transport industry, whose center is the Suez Canal, is one of the country's largest sources of foreign currency, AFP noted.
The safety of the Mediterranean coast, the northern gateway to Suez, is very important for the volume of transport through Egypt, a country that has received a large volume of traffic diverted from the Gulf during the conflict.
Prime Minister Madbouly's office previously affirmed that the government would take all "necessary measures to protect Egypt's national interests and security".
The July 29 attack took place when the US and Iran resumed fighting after a period of silence to restore negotiations. Iran fired a series of missiles at US targets in Jordan, while Washington retaliated with a "wave of fierce attacks" on the Islamic Republic.
