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The Egyptian narrowly endemic and critically endangered plant species <i>Rosa arabica</i> Crép. was studied employing a taxonomic and molecular approach. Morphological investigations, distance analysis, and phylogenetic reconstruction revealed that <i>R. arabica</i> is a distinct species with great affinity to <i>R. canina</i> and differentiated from <i>R. rubiginosa</i>. Molecular identification based on the sequences of multiple markers single or in combination ITS, <i>mat</i>K, <i>rbc</i>L, and <i>trn</i>L-F succeeded in identifying <i>R. arabica</i> at genus and species levels. We evaluated the potential of each marker and a combination of the nuclear ITS -Internal Transcribed Spacer- with one of the plastid markers, <i>mat</i>K, <i>rbc</i>L, or <i>trn</i>L-F, to accurately identify <i>Rosa</i> species. All of them were successful in identifying <i>R. arabica</i>. Classification based on DNA sequences shows that <i>R. arabica</i> is placed within section <i>Caninae</i> in a clade comprising <i>R. canina</i> and <i>R. rubiginosa</i>. Moreover, <i>R. arabica</i> is closely related to other European <i>Rosa</i> species. In conclusion, our results indicate that the four DNA markers can provide species resolution in the context of the genus <i>Rosa</i> and relatives, aiming to characterize morphology and genetic diversity in the ecological and economically important genus Rosa.