The foreign ministry congratulated Tuesday its western neighbour Libya after the conclusion of parliamentary elections.
“Egypt is looking forward to working with the House of Representatives,” a statement released by the Foreign Ministry said, adding that Egypt hopes Libya will “as soon as possible complete the steps of forming a government and building the rest of the state’s institutions”.
The statement also reiterated that Egyptian authorities are following with “great interest” all of the political developments that are taking place in Libya, which has seen instability and continual violence since the 2011 civil war ousted long standing autocrat Muammar Gaddafi.
“Egypt stresses its full support for the state and people”, the statement added, concluding that Egypt “reaffirms the territorial integrity of Libya and rejects any outside interference in the internal affairs of Libya”.
Libyan stability has long been an issue of concern for Egypt, as worries mount that militants could cross the porous border.
On Saturday, an attack on the Egyptian-Libyan border killed 22 Egyptian soldiers, prompting Egyptian president Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi to declare three days of national mourning.
According to a security source, Defence Minister Sedki Sobhi stressed the importance of increasing security along the Egyptian-Libyan borders given the threat to Egypt’s national security. He said this comes in light of weak Libyan security measures that have led to the smuggling of weapons inside Egypt throughout the years, in addition to the “entrance of terrorists”.
The military, in cooperation with the interior ministry, is conducting a wide range surveillance of the area and the borders in search of the terrorists, he added.
