Egyptian businessman Naguib Sawiris criticizes October 7 attacks as causing Gaza destruction

Egyptian businessman Naguib Sawiris told France 24 in an interview that Palestinians gained nothing from the October 7 attacks. He described the assault as a horrible act of terrorism that brought Palestinians only destruction. Sawiris also warned about an expansionist Israeli government. [1]

The remarks come three years after the October 7, 2023, attacks. The BBC reported that about 1,200 people were killed and 251 taken hostage during the initial assault. At kibbutz Nir Oz alone, located near the Gaza border, 41 residents and foreign workers were killed alongside six people who fled from a nearby party. Seventy-six people from that kibbutz were kidnapped, and 14 of those hostages were killed in captivity. [1][4]

The ongoing war has caused extensive casualties and displacement in Gaza. According to figures from Gaza's Ministry of Health cited by Al Jazeera, at least 74,018 Palestinians had been killed and 175,079 injured in Gaza by September 27, 2026. Al Jazeera reported that hundreds of thousands of residents were forced to flee their homes under displacement orders, often leaving with few personal possessions. [2]

Sawiris is an Egyptian-American billionaire businessman who serves as the chairman of Orascom Investment Holding and previously led Orascom Telecom Holding. He earned degrees from ETH Zurich before joining his family business conglomerate in 1979. [9][12]