Court ruling on the handover of Tiran and Sanafir islands to KSA just muddies the waters. The Cairo Court for Urgent Matters handed down a ruling yesterday that challenged the grounds of a previous order from the Supreme Administrative Court to block the transfer of Tiran and Sanafir islands to Saudi Arabia, Al Ahram reports. But there’s a catch: The Court of Urgent Matters lacks the jurisdiction to overturn a Supreme Administrative Court ruling given that the latter is a higher court, legal experts tell Al Mal. Khaled Ali, the activist lawyer whose lawsuit against the transfer of the islands to Saudi led to the Supreme Administrative Court’s ruling, also argued that the Urgent Matters Court’s ruling is unconstitutional, according to Al Shorouk. The government has sent the Tiran and Sanafir file to the House of Representatives for discussion, Prime Minister Sherif Ismail said yesterday, according to a Cabinet statement. Ismail said the House will have the final say on the agreement, Al Shorouk reports. Reuters is noting that the latest twist in the issue of the two islands comes just as relations between Egypt and Saudi Arabia have been improving of late.

A few hours after yesterday’s ruling was handed down, a number of judges denounced in a press conference amendments passed Parliament to the judicial codes which would give the president the power to appoint the head of the Court of Cassation and the head of the Supreme Judicial Council, a power that currently rests with the judiciary. Judges reportedly believe the law and the timing of its passing was tailored to impact the ruling of the Tiran and Sanafir case, according to the Associated Press.