On 22 September 2026, Gaillard Banifatemi Shelbaya Disputes, working closely with the Egyptian State Lawsuits Authority (ESLA), helped secure the full dismissal of claims in excess of USD 35.9 billion brought against the Arab Republic of Egypt by the family of Saudi real estate investor Hashem Al Mehdar in relation to the alleged expropriation of alleged real estate projects in Egypt. The claims were brought under the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) Investment Agreement and the Egypt-Netherlands Bilateral Investment Treaty.

Ruling by majority, the Tribunal, chaired by Professor Veijo Heiskanen and comprising Professor Jorge E. Viñuales and Justice Georges Affaki, declined jurisdiction over the dispute, dismissed the entirety of the USD 35.9 billion claims, and ordered the Claimants to bear all arbitration costs and to pay all legal fees and expenses incurred by Egypt in defending the claims.

“We are thrilled that we were able to assist Egypt in securing yet another important victory”, comments Mohamed Shelbaya. “Beyond the staggering value of the claims that were dismissed, the award is important for all OIC Member States as it confirms that the OIC Agreement does not contain a standing offer to arbitrate and that recourse to arbitration under the OIC agreement requires a separate agreement between the investor and the relevant Member State to first submit the dispute to conciliation”.

With respect to the tribunal’s findings on MFN, Shelbaya added: “The award also confirms that an MFN provision cannot be used to import consent to arbitration where none exists in the base treaty. As such, it limits the abusive practice of using MFN to create a bespoke treaty that was never intended by the contracting States”.

This victory comes on the heels of three other recent victories where our team, again working closely with ESLA, successfully defended Egypt against a series of claims totalling USD 190 million brought in two arbitrations related to a gas distribution concession in the Sharkeya governorate, and helped secure the summary dismissal of claims worth USD 30 billion brought in another UNCITRAL arbitration.

The team was led by partner Mohamed Shelbaya and included senior associates Chaymaa Shady and Rana Hatata, and associates Tatiana Lebbos, Deena Aboulwafa and Youssef Ismaïl.

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