By Rana Mamdouh — Mada Masr
Following the announcement by the head of St. Catherine’s Monastery of his intention to conclude an agreement with the Egyptian government concerning the Monastery and its surrounding lands, the Ismailia Court of Appeals (El-Tor Circuit), presided over by Judge Alaa Abdel Razek, decided on Monday, Oct. 26, to adjourn all cases brought by St. Catherine’s Monastery and the South Sinai Governorate concerning the Monastery’s lands until December 27, to allow the submission of documentation establishing the legal standing of the person responsible for administering the Monastery.
The Monastery’s lawyer, Fathi Ragheb, said he had read in the newspapers about an anticipated settlement between the Egyptian government and St. Catherine’s Monastery. However, several legal proceedings remain pending before the Court of Cassation and the Court of Appeals, and no rulings have yet been issued in those cases.
Speaking to Mada Masr, Ragheb requested additional time to determine the future of these proceedings after consulting the Monastery’s authorities. Mada Masr attempted to contact one of the Monastery’s monks or their representatives by telephone but had received no response by the time of publication.
Simeon’s Announcement
The court’s decision followed an announcement the previous day by Archbishop Simeon Papadopoulos of Sinai, Pharan and Raitho, declaring his intention to proceed with signing an agreement with the Egyptian government that would bring an end to the outstanding legal proceedings and disputes concerning the Monastery’s status.
In a statement published in the Greek press, Simeon said that a signing date would be agreed upon with the monks and the Egyptian government “as soon as his health permits.”
Simeon’s announcement was welcomed by government officials in both Egypt and Greece. He had been elected Archbishop and Abbot of St. Catherine’s Monastery on September 14, 2025, succeeding former Archbishop Damianos.
The Egyptian Foreign Ministry announced the previous day that Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty had received a letter from Simeon confirming his approval of the contract concerning the Monastery and its surrounding lands, ahead of its formal signing on a date to be determined.
According to the ministry, the agreement falls within the framework of implementing the May 28, 2025 ruling of the Ismailia Court of Appeals and fully complying with relevant Egyptian legislation, thereby bringing all judicial proceedings to an end.
Similarly, Greek Foreign Minister George Gerapetritis thanked Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi and Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty for what he described as their role in making the agreement possible.
In a statement published by the Greek Foreign Ministry, Gerapetritis said the agreement would safeguard the Monastery’s religious character and ecclesiastical possessions, while ensuring the continuation of monastic life by granting the monks long-term residence permits.
Former Archbishop Denounces “Unbearable” Pressure
By contrast, former Archbishop Damianos of St. Catherine’s Monastery said in a statement published the previous day that the Greek government, represented by its prime minister and foreign minister, had been exerting what he described as “unbearable” pressure on the Monastery’s monks in recent days to force them to sign a “disgraceful and unacceptable” settlement with the Egyptian state.
“I am certain that my brothers will not open the back gate to the fall of our Monastery,” Damianos declared.
Damianos, who headed the Monastery for 52 years, alleged that the Greek government had circulated claims that Egypt’s Court of Cassation was preparing to issue a final ruling in the Monastery’s case on October 24, in order to pressure Archbishop Simeon and the monks into signing the agreement proposed by the Egyptian government.
Commenting on the new Archbishop’s announcement, Damianos expressed his sadness, pointing out that Simeon’s statement did not disclose the contents of the proposed settlement or indicate that the Monastery’s monks had approved it, as required by the Monastery’s Fundamental Regulations.
Damianos insisted that Simeon had no authority to sign, on his own, any settlement involving the relinquishment of historic rights established over centuries.
The former Archbishop also revealed that, in late 2024, while he was still Archbishop of Sinai, he had reached an amicable agreement with the Egyptian government under which Egypt expressly and unconditionally recognized the Monastery’s ownership of all 71 disputed properties.
He said the agreement was never formally signed following the May 28, 2025 ruling of the Ismailia Court of Appeals, which affirmed Egyptian government ownership of the Monastery’s lands.
“The agreement was not signed because the Egyptian government, with which Gerapetritis [the Greek foreign minister] was supposedly negotiating, allowed the court ruling to be issued,” Damianos said.
“The issue is not merely legal; it is primarily political. No one can invoke the decisions of the Egyptian judiciary to evade their responsibilities.”
Egyptian Government’s Proposed Agreement
Last July, the Egyptian government, represented by its foreign and justice ministers, presented a new agreement to Simeon, Archbishop of Sinai and Abbot of St. Catherine’s Monastery.
The proposal contained several provisions, foremost among them recognition of the Monastery as an Egyptian religious legal entity and the granting of renewable three-year residence permits to its Archbishop and monks, who hold Greek, American and Lebanese nationalities.
Under the agreement, the monks would be granted the right to possess and occupy the Monastery and its religious institutions, enabling them to reside there and conduct religious services. They would also be permitted to lease the surrounding gardens and lands from the Egyptian government for extended periods at a nominal rent, without recognition of the monks’ ownership of any of the Monastery’s lands, according to a source close to the Monastery who spoke to Mada Masr at the time on condition of anonymity.
According to the same source, the Egyptian ministers of foreign affairs and justice met with Simeon for more than seven hours, urging him to sign the agreement in exchange for presidential ratification of his election and appointment as head of the Monastery.
This would follow the precedent established by former President Mohamed Anwar Sadat, who issued a decree appointing Damianos as Archbishop of the Monastery and subsequently granted him Egyptian nationality.
The source added that, since Simeon’s election as head of the Monastery on September 14, 2025, the Egyptian state had not issued any formal recognition of his position. This prevented him from operating the Monastery’s Egyptian bank accounts or conducting transactions with state institutions in South Sinai.
The source explained that Simeon holds a Greek diplomatic passport allowing him to travel to and from Egypt for two years, while the remaining monks hold 12-month tourist residence permits. However, renewal procedures take three months each year, effectively limiting their residence to nine months.
The Egyptian government’s new agreement is based on the May 2025 ruling of the Ismailia Court of Appeals, which established Egyptian state ownership of St. Catherine’s Monastery and its lands, while granting the monks rights of usufruct and religious occupancy within a defined area and placing all related transactions under the direct supervision of the Egyptian authorities.
The court also affirmed that the Monastery’s spiritual affiliation with the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate did not confer any legal privileges within Egypt.
The court divided the lands disputed between the Monastery and the Egyptian government into four categories.
The first category comprised the land on which the Monastery itself stands, together with other properties containing churches and religious sites. The court granted the monks and Archbishop the right of “religious occupancy” for residence and worship, while affirming that the properties remained state-owned and subject to the supervision of the Supreme Council of Antiquities.
The second category comprised lands outside the Monastery’s immediate boundaries. The court incorporated these into the St. Catherine Nature Protectorate, under the supervision of the Egyptian Environmental Affairs Agency, thereby stripping the Monastery of ownership.
The third category consisted of agricultural lands that the court classified as “eviction lands.” It ordered the monks’ eviction from these properties, ruling that their occupation constituted unlawful possession.
The fourth category included several plots containing small churches and monastic facilities, covered by preliminary contracts between the Monastery and the local administrative authority of St. Catherine. The court held that these contracts did not transfer ownership but merely established mutual obligations.
Two sources close to the Monastery had previously told Mada Masr that the Greek government supported the Egyptian agreement and was pressuring the Monastery’s Archbishop and monks to accept it, despite what the sources described as its surrender of ownership rights over the Monastery’s lands.
The sources said Egyptian government representatives had presented the new agreement in July, following an understanding reached with the Greek government.
“Catastrophic” Formula
In July, the Facebook page Friends of St. Catherine’s Monastery, which was familiar with the views of several monks, described the draft agreement as a “catastrophic formula that destroys the Monastery’s historic rights and deprives the monks of ownership.”
In a Facebook post that month, the page accused the Egyptian and Greek governments of prioritizing their political and economic interests over the spiritual and historical significance of one of the world’s oldest continuously inhabited monasteries where religious services are still conducted.
“The Monastery is being sold in the marketplace of political and economic interests in exchange for the energy agreement that Athens is seeking to conclude with Cairo,” the page stated.
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