Cairo – The Egyptian parliament will vote on Wednesday on a Saudi-Egyptian agreement to demarcate the marine borders.

The parliament’s legislative committee had approved the deal, signed last year, on Tuesday.

It passed with 35 lawmakers for and eight against.

It was then sent to the Committee on Defense and National Security that approved it on Wednesday. It will then be referred to a general parliament session for a final vote.

“We have unanimously approved the maritime demarcation accord with Saudi Arabia and it will be voted on in the general session today,” said committee Chairman Kamal Amer.

Saudi Arabia and Egypt had signed on April 18, 2016 an agreement to demarcate the sea borders that would see the islands of Tiran and Sanafir handed over to the Kingdom.

Parliament Speaker Ali Abdulaal said that the demarcation will be based on maps and documents that were released by the armed forces.

He stressed that Egypt’s armed forces “cannot waste a single grain of national soil.”