Fatemeh Sekhoudaei, head of the Iranian parliament’s national security committee, said Iran would support the US, but called for continued diplomatic efforts amid increasing tensions between Tehran and Washington since the January 2015 release of a group of kidnapped Americans from an Iranian prison.

The US has been pushing for Iran to release the US prisoners – nine in all – in exchange for Iran freeing several Americans detained after the deadly Islamic Revolution in 1979.

Iran has so far refused to reciprocally release the US prisoners, and has said they will refuse to negotiate in good faith.

Mr Sisi, under fire for the deaths in Cairo on 18 February of at least three police officers, said on Tuesday Egypt would “continue to engage in dialogue as long as we want to”.

The Egyptian army’s top general said on Monday the operation to free the hostages would cost at least $25m (£14.4m) and that it was a “military necessity” and would “contribute to security for the Egyptian people”, hours before US diplomats agreed to the exchange.

Iranian media reported that a senior Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps officer in Iran was among the 10 people freed in a deal announced at the Cairo airport on Monday.

In Tehran, Mahmoud Salami, a foreign ministry spokesman, said Iran had not given a commitment to release the US prisoners. And yet, he added, Iran needed guarantees that US military personnel would not be targeted by the militants and would not be used as pawns and hostages for terror organisations.