A leaked video that has widely circulated on social media allegedly shows Egypt's Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty reprimanding the country’s ambassador to the Netherlands over recent protest actions targeting the Egyptian embassy in The Hague.
In the video, Abdelatty appears visibly frustrated as he criticizes Ambassador Emad Hanna for what he described as a failure to prevent demonstrators from attaching padlocks to the embassy gates.
In a recording from what is believed to be a recent video conference with Egyptian diplomats, Abdelatty is heard telling ambassador Hanna, “I’m extremely upset. What happened at your post is what sparked all this controversy.” The foreign minister then reiterated a previous warning, saying, “I’ve said it a hundred times before. Anyone who even touches the embassy perimeter must be held accountable.”
The footage surfaced last night just as Abdelatty appeared on the pro-government talk show Masa’ on DMC channel, where he condemned demonstrations that had taken place in late July outside Egyptian missions in several European capitals, calling on Cairo to open the Rafah border and allow humanitarian aid into the besieged Gaza Strip.
Abdelatty accused the Muslim Brotherhood’s international network of orchestrating the protests, which included sit-ins and attempts to barricade embassy entrances. “This is nothing but a diversion from the genocide Israel is committing in Gaza,” he said on air.
He also described demonstrations by Brotherhood supporters outside the Egyptian embassy in Tel Aviv as “laughable.”
In the leaked exchange, Hanna defended his handling of the situation, explaining that the embassy in The Hague was the first to face such tactics and that other missions had since learned from the incident. “Since that first event,” he said, “we’ve had daily attempts to breach the premises or vandalize the property. Despite limited staff, we’ve continued to repel them.”
Despite the statements made by the foreign minister and the ambassador, news outlets circulated a video this morning that reportedly showed a new closure of the gate of the Egyptian embassy in the Netherlands.
Nonetheless, the minister appears unconvinced, insisting on a zero-tolerance policy, invoking his own experience as ambassador to Belgium during the 2012 unrest. “Back in Brussels, during the height of the chaos, if anyone dared touch the wall, we detained them on the spot. We called the police and reported them for harassing the embassy.”
The foreign minister also hinted at retaliatory measures, urging reciprocal security arrangements with European embassies in Cairo. “If their governments won’t provide adequate security for our missions, then we should reconsider our own deployments,” Abdelatty said.
During the video conference, he appeared to approve Hanna’s suggestion to reduce security details for the Dutch embassy in Cairo. “If anyone asks why, tell them it’s their fault,” Abdelatty said. “If they keep slacking, we won’t just reduce security — we’ll pull it altogether.”
He emphasized the importance of projecting national strength, saying, “We cannot let Egypt be seen as weak or trampled on. I’m the foreign minister, and I take full responsibility for this approach.”
“If someone puts paint on our gates, grab them, tie them up and hand them to the police. Say they harassed the embassy. If someone tries to hang a lock or do anything else, drag them inside and make their lives hell,” he added.
Al Manassa attempted to verify the video’s authenticity by contacting Foreign Ministry spokesperson Ambassador Tamim Khallaf but received no response till the time of publication.
However, Abdelatty’s remarks in the leaked video echo his statement in the DMC interview, where he said that all guards at Egyptian embassies were on high alert and that several incidents had been dealt with and thwarted in coordination with local police.
He also singled out European governments, accusing some of failing to adequately protect Egyptian diplomatic posts. “We are documenting these shortcomings and applying reciprocity,” Abdelatty said. “States that don’t secure our embassies will face similar conditions here.”
In a recorded speech in late July, President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi defended Egypt’s role in Gaza and dismissed criticism of the Rafah crossing closure. He argued that aid delivery required coordination with Israeli authorities, who have maintained control over the Palestinian side of the crossing since May 7.
