The Saudi–Egypt Causeway is a proposal to link

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Med ...

and

Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in Western Asia. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and has a land area of about , making it the List of Asian countries by area, fifth-largest country in Asia ...

with a

causeway A causeway is a track, road or railway on the upper point of an embankment across "a low, or wet place, or piece of water". It can be constructed of earth, masonry, wood, or concrete. One of the earliest known wooden causeways is the Sweet ...

and

bridge A bridge is a structure built to span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or rail) without blocking the way underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, which is usually somethi ...

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The Egyptian president suggested to name the proposed structure " King Salman bin Abdulaziz Bridge". The entire project is expected to cost about 4 billion US dollars and will be financed by Saudi Arabia. The causeway would link Tabuk to the Red Sea resort of

Sharm el-Sheikh Sharm El Sheikh ( ar, شرم الشيخ, ), commonly abbreviated to Sharm, is an Egyptian city on the southern tip of the Sinai Peninsula, in South Sinai Governorate, on the coastal strip along the Red Sea. Its population is approximately 53,670 ...

on the

Sinai Peninsula The Sinai Peninsula, or simply Sinai (now usually ) (, , cop, Ⲥⲓⲛⲁ), is a peninsula in Egypt, and the only part of the country located in Asia. It is between the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Red Sea to the south, and is a ...

and would pass through

Tiran Island Tiran ( ar, جزيرة تيران ''Jezîret Tīrān'', ''Jazīrat Tīrān''), and ''Yotvat Island'', is a Saudi Arabian island that was formerly administered by Egypt. Sovereignty of the two Red Sea islands, Tiran and Sanafir, was ceded off ...

at the entrance of the

Gulf of Aqaba The Gulf of Aqaba ( ar, خَلِيجُ ٱلْعَقَبَةِ, Khalīj al-ʿAqabah) or Gulf of Eilat ( he, מפרץ אילת, Mifrátz Eilát) is a large gulf at the northern tip of the Red Sea, east of the Sinai Peninsula and west of the Arabi ...

. Funding for the causeway was announced from the

Saudi Binladin Group Saudi Binladin Group (SBG) is a Saudi construction company headquartered in Jeddah, Hejaz. It is the largest construction company of the Middle East. The company is owned primarily by the Bin Laden family. Founded by Muhammad Binladin in 1931 ...

, which will work the Egyptian government-run firm Arab Contractors. The proposed construction projects aim to create closer links between the two nations and create jobs on both sides. This is part of a greater plan by the Egyptian government that intends to populate the Sinai peninsula. It will also provide an alternative

pilgrimage A pilgrimage is a journey, often into an unknown or foreign place, where a person goes in search of new or expanded meaning about their self, others, nature, or a higher good, through the experience. It can lead to a personal transformation, aft ...

route, and is expected to serve a million passengers and pilgrims annually. Concerns have been raised about environment effects, and by neighbours regarding security. The extra traffic and additional development could cause a further decline of the threatened

Red Sea The Red Sea ( ar, البحر الأحمر - بحر القلزم, translit=Modern: al-Baḥr al-ʾAḥmar, Medieval: Baḥr al-Qulzum; or ; Coptic: ⲫⲓⲟⲙ ⲛ̀ϩⲁϩ ''Phiom Enhah'' or ⲫⲓⲟⲙ ⲛ̀ϣⲁⲣⲓ ''Phiom ǹšari''; ...

dugong The dugong (; ''Dugong dugon'') is a marine mammal. It is one of four living species of the order Sirenia, which also includes three species of manatees. It is the only living representative of the once-diverse family Dugongidae; its close ...

population and damage to coral reefs and fisheries. One such organization,

Hurghada Environmental Protection and Conservation Association The Hurghada Environmental Protection and Conservation Association (formally known as HEPCA) is a Non Governmental Organization that works primarily with marine and land conservation in the Red Sea Governorate in Egypt. Since its establishment ...

(HEPCA) approves a bridge subject to reefs not being harmed and an environmental survey with recommendations implemented. Article V of the

Camp David Accords The Camp David Accords were a pair of political agreements signed by Egyptian President Anwar Sadat and Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin on 17 September 1978, following twelve days of secret negotiations at Camp David, the country retr ...

between

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

and Egypt provides for the right of freedom of navigation through the Strait of Tiran. The project was suspended in 2005 by the

Hosni Mubarak Muhammad Hosni El Sayed Mubarak, (; 4 May 1928 – 25 February 2020) was an Egyptian politician and military officer who served as the fourth president of Egypt from 1981 to 2011. Before he entered politics, Mubarak was a career officer in ...

government, due to security concerns voiced by Israel. Before it lost power, the

Mohamed Morsi Mohamed Mohamed Morsi Eissa al-AyyatThe spellings of his first and last names vary. survey of 14 news organizations plus Wikipedia in July 2012 King Salman Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud ( ar, سلمان بن عبد العزیز آل سعود, , ; born 31 December 1935) is King of Saudi Arabia, reigning since 2015, and served as Prime Minister of Saudi Arabia from 2015 to 2022. The 25th son of Ki ...

of Saudi Arabia announced with Egypt's President

El-Sisi Abdel Fattah Saeed Hussein Khalil el-Sisi; (born 19 November 1954) is an Egyptian politician and retired military officer who has served as the sixth and current president of Egypt since 2014. Before retiring as a general in the Egyptian mil ...

an agreement to build a bridge between the two countries. The announcement followed Egypt and Saudi Arabia signing an agreement on maritime border demarcation and marking the islands of Tiran and

Sanafir Sanafir Island ( ar, جزيرة صنافر, Geziret Ṣanafir, ) is a Saudi island in the Straits of Tiran east of Tiran Island. It is about it is located at the entrance to the Straits of Tiran, which separates the Gulf of Aqaba from the Red ...

within Saudi regional waters. Israel announced that it does not object to the island transfer.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Saudi-Egypt Causeway International bridges Bridges in Egypt Bridges in Saudi Arabia Proposed bridges in Asia Egypt–Saudi Arabia relations Proposed transcontinental crossings

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References