Egypt Clarifies Israel Gas Deal as 'Purely Commercial,' Reaffirms Stance on Palestine

Egyptian officials emphasized Thursday that the recently approved multibillion-dollar natural gas deal with Israel is purely a commercial arrangement and does not reflect any shift in Cairo’s longstanding position on the Palestinian issue.

Diaa Rashwan, head of Egypt’s State Information Service, told Saudi outlet Asharq News that the deal is "a purely economic relation between private companies from both countries," adding that it does not include any political understandings or implications. “What happened was a commercial contract subject to market rules and international investment mechanisms, far removed from any political exploitation or interpretation,” he said.

The agreement, which Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu unveiled on Wednesday, involves the export of natural gas from Israel’s Leviathan field to Egypt and is valued at approximately NIS 112 billion (around $34.7 billion). Of this, NIS 58 billion ($18 billion) will go directly into Israeli state coffers.

Netanyahu described the deal as a major economic and strategic win for Israel, positioning it as a regional energy hub and strengthening ties in the Eastern Mediterranean. “This deal greatly strengthens Israel’s position as a regional energy powerhouse, and it contributes to stability in our region,” he said during a televised address.

Egyptian officials, however, were quick to separate the deal from any broader political realignment. They stressed that Egypt's position on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict remains unchanged and reiterated Cairo's commitment to a Palestinian state.

Meanwhile, Israeli opposition leader and former prime minister Yair Lapid framed the deal as a potential strategic opportunity. Writing on X (formerly Twitter), Lapid suggested that Egypt’s economic involvement could lay the groundwork for Cairo to lead post-war reconstruction and demilitarization efforts in Gaza.

“In February 2025, almost a year ago, I presented the ‘Egypt Plan’ to the government in Washington,” Lapid wrote. “It involved strengthening economic ties with Cairo and supporting a combined effort to get Egypt to take on the management of the Gaza Strip.” He criticized Netanyahu’s government for allegedly refusing to engage with the proposal, warning against missing a historic opportunity.

Despite Egypt’s insistence that the deal is strictly commercial, the agreement comes at a time of heightened regional scrutiny amid ongoing conflict in Gaza and efforts by the U.S. and its allies to shape a post-war framework.

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