Officials claimed that remote-controlled cameras will take over from US-led peacekeepers in ensuring international commerce has unfettered access to the Gulf of Aqaba, whose shoreline is shared by Israel and three Arab states.

Tiran island, located near the opening of the Gulf of Aden, was given to Saudi Arabia by Egypt in 2017, together with neighboring Sanafir island.

During a trip to Israel and Saudi Arabia last week, US President Joe Biden announced the departure of the small Multinational Force and Observers (MFO) force on Tiran.

The MFO monitors a 1979 peace treaty mediated by the US between Egypt and Israel, which placed troops across the demilitarized Sinai and atop Tiran to protect unrestricted transportation in and out of the Gulf of Aqaba.

The Straits of Tiran have a turbulent history: Egypt blockedaded them in May 1967, which was one of the reasons for Egypt’s war with Israel the following month. In 1973, the countries fought another battle in Sinai.