Egypt reaffirms commitment to preserving religious status of historic St. Catherine’s Monastery
Egyptian foreign minister meets with Greek counterpart in Cairo
Tourist attraction to St. Catherine's Monastery in Egypt
ISTANBUL
Egypt reaffirmed its commitment to preserving the religious status of the historic St. Catherine’s Monastery, located at the foot of Mt. Sinai in the Sinai Peninsula and administratively affiliated with the Greek Orthodox Church.
This came during a meeting Wednesday in Cairo between Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty and his Greek counterpart Giorgos Gerapetritis, according to a statement by the Egyptian Foreign Ministry.
The two sides also discussed ways to enhance the strong bilateral ties between their countries.
Abdelatty praised “the historical ties between Egypt and Greece and their distinguished political, economic and cultural relations, which culminated last month in the elevation of relations to a Strategic Partnership during the first meeting of the High-Level Cooperation Council in Athens that was chaired by President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and the Prime Minister of Greece, Kyriakos Mitsotakis,” according to the statement.
The Egyptian diplomat expressed his country’s desire to further advance this partnership across all sectors and briefed his Greek counterpart on a May 28 court ruling concerning land surrounding St. Catherine’s Monastery.
The court ruled in favor of the monastery's continued use of religious and heritage sites in the area while maintaining the state’s ownership of the land as public property.
Following the ruling, statements from Athens stressed the need to protect the monastery’s Greek Orthodox identity and resolve the issue within institutional frameworks based on bilateral agreements.
During the meeting, Abdelatty emphasized that Egypt remains fully committed to respecting the spiritual and religious importance of the monastery and the sites linked to it.
He said that contrary to some media reports, the court ruling confirmed the monastery’s religious, spiritual and monastic status over the surrounding land.
He described the ruling as a milestone that allows the monastery to continue its religious functions without any change to the current situation.
The monastery was built in the 6th century and is traditionally believed to be the site where Prophet Moses received the Ten Commandments.
It is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site and is recognized as the world’s oldest continually inhabited monastery, drawing numerous visitors each year.
