
The Egypt–Libya border () is 1,115 km (693 mi) in length and runs from the
Mediterranean Sea
The Mediterranean Sea ( ) is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the east by the Levant in West Asia, on the north by Anatolia in West Asia and Southern Eur ...
in the north to the tripoint with
Sudan
Sudan, officially the Republic of the Sudan, is a country in Northeast Africa. It borders the Central African Republic to the southwest, Chad to the west, Libya to the northwest, Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the east, Eritrea and Ethiopi ...
in the south.
Description
The border starts in the north on the Mediterranean coast at the Gulf of Sallum. It then proceeds overland roughly southwards via series of irregular lines that frequently veer south-west or south-east, before reaching the
25th meridian east
The meridian 25° east of Greenwich is a line of longitude that extends from the North Pole across the Arctic Ocean, Europe, Africa, the Indian Ocean, the Southern Ocean, and Antarctica to the South Pole.
The 25th meridian east forms a great ci ...
.
The border then follows this meridian south down to the Sudanese tripoint on
Gabal El Uweinat. Only the northern littoral section of the boundary contains any significant population centres, with the vast majority of the frontier running through remote areas of the
Sahara desert
The Sahara (, ) is a desert spanning across North Africa. With an area of , it is the largest hot desert in the world and the list of deserts by area, third-largest desert overall, smaller only than the deserts of Antarctica and the northern Ar ...
, including the
Great Sand Sea and
Libyan desert
The Libyan Desert (not to be confused with the Libyan Sahara) is a geographical region filling the northeastern Sahara Desert, from eastern Libya to the Western Desert (Egypt), Western Desert of Egypt and far northwestern Sudan. On medieval m ...
.
History
Egypt and Libya are both ancient civilizations, with a long history dating back thousands of years, with evidence of settlements and cultures in both regions predating recorded history; in fact,
Ancient Egypt
Ancient Egypt () was a cradle of civilization concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile River in Northeast Africa. It emerged from prehistoric Egypt around 3150BC (according to conventional Egyptian chronology), when Upper and Lower E ...
often interacted with various Libyan tribes throughout its history, with some Libyan dynasties even ruling parts of Egypt. While not as well documented as Egypt,
Libya
Libya, officially the State of Libya, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to Egypt–Libya border, the east, Sudan to Libya–Sudan border, the southeast, Chad to Chad–L ...
also has a long history, with evidence of ancient Libyan tribes like the
Meshwesh
The Meshwesh (often abbreviated in ancient Egyptian as Ma) was an ancient Libyan tribe, of Berber origin along with other groups like Libu and Tehenu/Tjemehu, and also some of the Sea Peoples.
Early records of the Meshwesh date back to the Eight ...
and Tehenu who interacted with the Egyptians. In 30 BC, following the collapse of the
Ptolemaic dynasty
The Ptolemaic dynasty (; , ''Ptolemaioi''), also known as the Lagid dynasty (, ''Lagidai''; after Ptolemy I's father, Lagus), was a Macedonian Greek royal house which ruled the Ptolemaic Kingdom in Ancient Egypt during the Hellenistic period. ...
after the
Battle of Alexandria as well as the
War of Actium
The War of Actium (32–30 BC) was the last civil war of the Roman Republic, fought between Mark Antony (assisted by Cleopatra and by extension Ptolemaic Egypt) and Octavian. In 32 BC, Octavian convinced the Roman Senate to declare war on the ...
, Egypt had become a
Roman province
The Roman provinces (, pl. ) were the administrative regions of Ancient Rome outside Roman Italy that were controlled by the Romans under the Roman Republic and later the Roman Empire. Each province was ruled by a Roman appointed as Roman g ...
and the region of Cyrenaica in Libya being incorporated into the
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire ruled the Mediterranean and much of Europe, Western Asia and North Africa. The Roman people, Romans conquered most of this during the Roman Republic, Republic, and it was ruled by emperors following Octavian's assumption of ...
through various conquests led by
Octavian
Gaius Julius Caesar Augustus (born Gaius Octavius; 23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14), also known as Octavian (), was the founder of the Roman Empire, who reigned as the first Roman emperor from 27 BC until his death in ...
, meaning both territories in North Africa were under Roman rule at its peak. The
Cairo Campaign during the
French Revolutionary Wars
The French Revolutionary Wars () were a series of sweeping military conflicts resulting from the French Revolution that lasted from 1792 until 1802. They pitted French First Republic, France against Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain, Habsb ...
led by the British to defeat
Napoleon
Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...
's French forces trapped in Egypt especially such as the
Battle of the Nile
The Battle of the Nile (also known as the Battle of Aboukir Bay; ) was fought between the Royal Navy and the French Navy at Abu Qir Bay, Aboukir Bay in Ottoman Egypt, Egypt between 1–3 August 1798. It was the climax of the Mediterranean ca ...
and the
Battle of the Pyramids in 1798.
Egypt, though nominally part of the
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...
, had acquired a large degree of autonomy under
Muhammad Ali
Muhammad Ali (; born Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr.; January 17, 1942 – June 3, 2016) was an American professional boxer and social activist. A global cultural icon, widely known by the nickname "The Greatest", he is often regarded as the gr ...
following the
Second Egyptian-Ottoman War of 1839–41.
In 1882 the British occupied Egypt, effectively establishing a protectorate (formally declared only in 1914).
The
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...
had also nominally ruled the coastal areas of what is today Libya since the 16th century, organised into the
Vilayet of Tripolitania, with a vaguely defined border between the Vilayet and Egypt based on an 1841 Ottoman
firman
A firman (; ), at the constitutional level, was a royal mandate or decree issued by a sovereign in an Islamic state. During various periods such firmans were collected and applied as traditional bodies of law. The English word ''firman'' co ...
, which placed the border further to the east than its current position.
In September 1911, Italy invaded Tripolitania, and the
Treaty of Ouchy was signed the following year by which the Ottomans formally ceded sovereignty of the area over to Italy during the
Turco-Italian War.
Italy organised the newly conquered regions into the colonies of
Italian Cyrenaica
Italian Cyrenaica (; ) was an Italian colony, located in present-day eastern Libya, that existed from 1911 to 1934. It was part of the territory conquered from the Ottoman Empire during the Italo-Turkish War of 1911, alongside Italian Tripolitan ...
and
Italian Tripolitania
Italian Tripolitania was an Italian colony, located in present-day western Libya, that existed from 1911 to 1934. It was part of the territory conquered from the Ottoman Empire after the Italo-Turkish War in 1911. Italian Tripolitania included th ...
and gradually began pushing further south; in 1934 they united the two territories into
Italian Libya
Libya (; ) was a colony of Fascist Italy (1922–1943), Italy located in North Africa, in what is now modern Libya, between 1934 and 1943. It was formed from the unification of the colonies of Italian Cyrenaica, Cyrenaica and Italian Tripolitan ...
.

Egypt achieved full independence in 1922.
The border became a point of contention - for example, Egypt rejected a secret
Anglo-Italian treaty of 1915 which had ceded the
Al Jaghbub Oasis to Italian Libya.
Egypt and Italy signed a treaty on 6 December 1925 which finalised the border at its current position (though Egypt did not formally ratify the treaty until 1932–3).
The northern section of the border was delimited in more detail in 1926–7, with the boundary then being demarcated on the ground by a series of pillars.
Further on-the-ground demarcation occurred in 1937–8, which resulted in some minor modifications.
Meanwhile, Italy, in attempt to control the
Senussi
The Senusiyya, Senussi or Sanusi () are a Muslim political-religious Sufi order and clan in Libya and surrounding regions founded in Mecca in 1837 by the Grand Sanussi ( ''as-Sanūssiyy al-Kabīr''), the Algerian Muhammad ibn Ali al-Sanusi.
...
rebels, had constructed a
fence
A fence is a structure that encloses an area, typically outdoors, and is usually constructed from posts that are connected by boards, wire, rails or net (textile), netting. A fence differs from a wall in not having a solid foundation along its ...
along much of the frontier in the 1920s-30s.
During the
North African Campaign
The North African campaign of World War II took place in North Africa from 10 June 1940 to 13 May 1943, fought between the Allies and the Axis Powers. It included campaigns in the Libyan and Egyptian deserts (Western Desert campaign, Desert Wa ...
of the
Second World War
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
Italy was defeated and its African colonies were occupied by the Allied powers, with Libya split into British and French zones of occupation.
Libya was later granted full independence on 2 December 1951.
During this period Egypt occasionally pressed for a modification of the border, stating that it should shift westwards to the
24th meridian east, with
Al Jaghbub and
Bardiyah to be included within Egypt.
These claims appear to have been abandoned by the early 1950s.
Relations between the two states since then have largely been cordial, however tensions rose in the 1970s, due largely the more assertive
pan-Arab and anti-Israel foreign policy of the
Gaddafi
Muammar Muhammad Abu Minyar al-Gaddafi (20 October 2011) was a Libyan military officer, revolutionary, politician and political theorist who ruled Libya from 1969 until his assassination by Libyan rebel forces in 2011. He came to power ...
government in
Libya
Libya, officially the State of Libya, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to Egypt–Libya border, the east, Sudan to Libya–Sudan border, the southeast, Chad to Chad–L ...
, which resulted in a
brief war between the two countries along their northern border in 1977.
Relations thereafter remained tense, but had largely normalised by the early 1990s. The border region has again become an area of concern as Egypt seeks to insulate itself from the effects of the ongoing
civil war
A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...
in Libya. Unlike the most powerful jihadist organizations of
Ansar al-Sharia that became a militant allegiance that pledged, the
Islamic State
The Islamic State (IS), also known as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) and Daesh, is a transnational Salafi jihadism, Salafi jihadist organization and unrecognized quasi-state. IS ...
(ISIS or ISIL) arrived in Libya by September 2014 which was home to many foreign terrorist groups that became part of a global terrorist network until they were defeated in
Sabha by fleeing the urban centers to an unknown location in the southern desert which will continue to operate and terrorist recruits from the
Middle East
The Middle East (term originally coined in English language) is a geopolitical region encompassing the Arabian Peninsula, the Levant, Turkey, Egypt, Iran, and Iraq.
The term came into widespread usage by the United Kingdom and western Eur ...
and
Africa
Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...
.
Settlements near the border
Egypt
*
Sallum
*
Sidi Omar
*
Siwa Oasis
The Siwa Oasis ( ) is an urban oasis in Egypt. It is situated between the Qattara Depression and the Great Sand Sea in the Western Desert (Egypt), Western Desert, east of the Egypt–Libya border and from the Egyptian capital city of Cairo. I ...
Libya
*
Bardia
Bardia, also El Burdi or Bardiyah ( or ) is a Mediterranean seaport in the Butnan District of eastern Libya, located near the border with Egypt. It is also occasionally called ''Bórdi Slemán''.
The name Bardia is deeply rooted in the ancient ...
*
Musaid
*
Jaghbub
See also
*
Egypt–Libya relations
*
Egypt–Sudan border
*
Frontier Wire (Libya)
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Egypt-Libya border
Borders of Egypt
Borders of Libya
International borders