Egyptian newspaper calls King Salman 'traitor' amid souring relations

In a move to increase tension between two once unshakable allies, an Egyptian newspaper, "Alanbaa Aldawlia," (The International News) called Saudi Arabia' King Salman, "a Traitor" in its Wednesday issue.

Salman's photo appeared on the top of its front page, with the bold title "His Majesty, The Traitor." The newspaper, in its article, justified this labelling by citing cutting oil supplies to Egypt against the alleged order of his brother King Abdullah and supporting Ethiopia's dam project on the Nile River, dubbed the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD). Ethiopia accuses Egypt of interfering in the country's affairs and backing ethnic groups that have ignited tensions in the country, especially in the region of Oromia.

Despite a long-term relationship between Cairo and Riyadh since the 2013 military coup carried out by Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi, political disagreements between both countries have increased.

Relations between Saudi Arabia and Egypt appear to have soured as the two countries have begun differing on regional issues. Amid political disagreements between both countries, Saudi Arabia has halted fuel shipments indefinitely after Saudi state oil company Aramco informed Egypt of the suspension of oil shipments in October.

The Security Council spat was the first public quarrel between Riyadh and Cairo since the Egyptian military's 2013 ouster of the former president Mohammed Morsi and the subsequent flow of billions of dollars in Saudi aid that kept Egypt's ailing economy afloat.

Saudi's move came after Egypt's announcement's that it will host Russian troops for war games along the Mediterranean coast, the latest step in the two countries' rapprochement. The drill, due to take place from Oct. 15-26 in the coastal city of El-Alamein and dubbed the "Guardians of Friendship," includes "elite units" from both sides. Russia's defense ministry said it would be the first ever joint paratrooper exercise for the two and would involve armor being dropped from planes.

Egypt has increased cooperation with Russia under Sissi, including a preliminary agreement to build a nuclear power plant. The country is also negotiating with Russia to restore flights to its Red Sea resorts, a year after the bombing of a Russian airliner carrying holidaymakers back to St. Petersburg.

As one of the non-permanent Security Council members, Egypt voted in favor of Russian draft resolutions on Syria at the U.N. Security Council in October, a move which has apparently angered the Saudis.

Egypt and Saudi Arabia's differences has been rooted over Syria as Saudi Arabia is opposed to Russian support to Bashar Assad forces in Syria and its intervention in the Middle east region. Egypt has been moving closer to Russia, harshly condemned by the Saudis and other Arabs for its heavy-handed military intervention in Syria.