In his statement at the onset of the case of Tiran and Sanafir islands at a public meeting in front of a large group of Egyptians and Saudis, Dr. Moustafa Elfeki, Director of the Library of Alexandria, proposed that both Egypt and Saudi Arabia should spare their people any possible embarrassment, and should resort to international jurisdiction through the International Court of Justice, instead of the push and pull that took several months back then.
He added, “I called for this procedure to maintain the historical rights of Egypt and Saudi Arabia regarding both islands, especially that Egypt had been guarding and protecting them from Israeli exploitations for several decades. It was never my intention to pit one party against the other, and my writings were published in this context at that time.”