CAIRO: Egypt wants the United Nations Security Council to “undertake its responsibilities” and prevent Ethiopia from starting to fill its massive, newly built hydroelectric dam on the Nile River next month amid a breakdown in negotiations, Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shukry told The Associated Press on Sunday, accusing Ethiopian officials of stoking antagonism between the countries.
Ethiopia announced Friday that it would begin filling the dam’s reservoir in July even after the latest round of talks with Egypt and Sudan failed last week to reach a deal governing how the dam will be filled and operated.
Egypt formally asked the Security Council to intervene in a letter the same day.
“The responsibility of the Security Council is to address a pertinent threat to international peace and security, and certainly the unilateral actions by Ethiopia in this regard would constitute such a threat,” Shukry said in an interview with the AP.
Filling the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam would potentially bring the years-long dispute between Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia over the $4.6 million mega-project to a critical juncture. Ethiopia said the electricity that will be generated by the dam is a crucial lifeline to bring millions out of poverty. With the start of the rainy season in July bringing more water to the Blue Nile, the Nile’s main tributary, Ethiopia wants to start filling the reservoir.
Egypt, which relies on the Nile for more than 90% of its water supplies, fears a devastating impact if the dam is operated without taking its needs into account. Sudan, which also largely depends on the Nile for water, has been caught between the competing interests.
The United States earlier this year tried to broker a deal, but Ethiopia did not attend the signing meeting in February and accused the Trump administration of siding with Egypt. Last week, the US National Security Council tweeted that “257 million people in east Africa are relying on Ethiopia to show strong leadership, which means striking a fair deal.”
Shukry warned that filling the reservoir without an accord would violate the 2015 declaration of principles governing their talks — and rule out a return to negotiations.
“We are not seeking any coercive action by the Security Council,” he said. In a three-page letter to the council, Egypt asked it to call Ethiopia back into talks for a “fair and balanced solution” and to urge it refrain from unilateral acts, warning that filling the dam without a deal “constitutes a clear and present danger to Egypt” with repercussions that “threaten international peace and security.”
Hanging over the dispute has been the fear it could escalate into military conflict, especially as Egypt — facing what it calls an existential threat — repeatedly hits dead ends in its attempt to strike a deal. Commentators in Egypt’s pro-government media have often called for action to stop Ethiopia. One commentator, Moustafa Al-Saeed said in a Facebook post that starting to fill the reservoir would be a “declaration of war” and urged the government to block Ethiopian traffic through the Suez Canal.
Shukry underlined that the Egyptian government has not threatened military action, has sought a political solution, and has worked to convince the Egyptian public that Ethiopia has a right to build the dam to meet its development goals.
“Egypt has never, never over the past six years even made an indirect reference to such possibilities,” he said of military action.
But, he said, if the Security Council cannot bring Ethiopia back into negotiations and filling begins, “we will find ourselves in a situation that we will have to deal with,” he said. “When that time is upon us, we will be very vocal and clear in what action we will take.”
He called on the USand other Security Council members, along with African nations, to help reach a deal that “takes into account the interests of all three countries.”
Sticking points in the talks have been how much water Ethiopia will release downstream from the dam if a multi-year drought occurs and how Ethiopia, Egypt and Sudan will resolve any future disputes.
This month, ministers from the three countries held seven days of negotiations by video conference, but talks ended Wednesday with no deal. No date was set for a return to the table.
Ethiopian Foreign Minister Gedu Andargachew told the AP on Friday that filling the dam would begin with the rainy season in July and dismissed the need for an agreement. He accused Egypt of trying to “dictate and control even future developments on our river.”
Egypt’s Shukry on Sunday countered that Ethiopia was backing out of previously agreed-upon points.
“We have on many occasions been flexible and been accommodating. But I can’t say that there is a similar political will on the side of Ethiopia,” he said.
He called Andargachew’s comments “disappointing,” pointing to “the escalation of antagonism that has been intentionally created.” Starting to fill the reservoir now, he said, would demonstrate “a desire to control the flow of the water and have effective sole determination” of the water that reaches Egypt and Sudan.
After the end of talks on Wednesday, Sudan’s irrigation minister said his country and Egypt rejected Ethiopia’s attempts to introduce articles on water sharing in the dam deal. Egypt has received the lion’s share of the Nile’s waters under decades-old agreements dating back to the British colonial era. Eighty-five percent of the Nile’s waters originate in Ethiopia from the Blue Nile.
Shukry said Egypt maintains that an agreement can be achieved, but that it “has to be negotiated in good faith.” He said any future deal on shares of the Nile’s water should take into account that Ethiopia has other water sources besides the Nile.
Egypt says UN must stop Ethiopia on dam fill
https://arab.news/gmdcj
Egypt says UN must stop Ethiopia on dam fill
- Ethiopia announced Friday that it would begin filling the dam’s reservoir in July
- Egypt formally asked the Security Council to intervene in a letter
Army chief Gen. Joseph Aoun seems increasingly likely to be Lebanon’s new president
- On eve of latest attempt by MPs to agree on a candidate, reports suggest Hezbollah’s preferred candidate ‘may announce his withdrawal’
- French envoy Jean-Yves Le Drian arrives in Beirut and is expected to attend the parliamentary presidential election session on Thursday
BEIRUT: A day before the Lebanese parliament was due to assemble to discuss the election of a president — an office that has remained vacant for more than 26 months — there was a flurry of activity on Wednesday including intensified discussions, communications and declarations.
Reports in the afternoon suggested that Hezbollah’s preferred candidate, Suleiman Frangieh, “may announce his withdrawal from the presidential race,” leaving army chief Gen. Joseph Aoun as the leading contender.
The day was marked by a visit from French envoy Jean-Yves Le Drian, who arrived in Beirut on Tuesday evening and was expected to attend the parliamentary presidential election session on Thursday.
He held meetings with several political and parliamentary figures, during which he reportedly recommended Aoun for “consideration without any preconditions.” This was in relation to the bloc of Hezbollah and Amal Movement MPs who opposed the general’s nomination on the grounds that his election would require a constitutional amendment because he still serves in his capacity as commander of the army.
The head of Hezbollah’s parliamentary bloc, MP Mohammed Raad, was quoted after meeting the French envoy as saying: “Hezbollah will not stand in the way of the Lebanese people’s consensus on the name of a president for the republic.”
Media estimates suggest that Aoun, if he secures the support of Hezbollah and Amal, would win 95 votes in the 128-member parliament. This level of support would mean a constitutional amendment is not needed.
Events leading up to Thursday’s session suggested all parliamentary blocs are committed to attending, which would ensure the quorum required for the election is reached. The presidency has been vacant since former president Michel Aoun’s term ended in October 2022. Previous attempts to appoint a successor failed amid disagreements between political factions about suitable candidates.
Prime Minister Najib Mikati said he was feeling “joy for the first time since the presidential vacancy as, God willing, we will have a new president for the republic tomorrow,” raising hopes that the office might finally be filled.
One political observer said there is now the real possibility that “all members of parliament, regardless of their political affiliations, would choose their candidate within the framework of consensus and understanding during the voting sessions, which will remain open as confirmed by the speaker of parliament, Nabih Berri, until” a decision is reached.
This renewed optimism was in contrast to the prior skepticism about the possibility that parliamentary blocs would be able to successfully convene a session to elect a president, given their previous failures to reach a consensus on a candidate who could secure a majority in the first round of voting.
The electoral session on Thursday will be the 13th of its kind. During the previous one, in June 2024, the candidate favored by Hezbollah and its allies, former minister and Marada Movement leader Suleiman Frangieh, who was close to the Assad regime in Syria, faced the candidate favored by the Free Patriotic Movement and opposition parties, former Minister of Finance Jihad Azour, who is director of the Middle East and Central Asia department at the International Monetary Fund.
During that session, Frangieh received 51 votes in the first round of voting and Azour 59. When the totals were announced, Hezbollah and Amal MPs withdrew from the session, thereby depriving it of the quorum required for a second round of voting, as stipulated by the constitution.
Against this background of long-running political divisions resulting in deadlock within the parliament, and in light of the war between Israel and Hezbollah, the number of presidential candidates has dwindled from 11 to just a few names. Aside from Aoun, Frangieh and Azour, the other candidates whose names continued to circulate to varying degrees on Wednesday included Samir Geagea, the head of the Lebanese Forces party, which heads the parliament’s biggest Christian bloc. However, he is fiercely opposed by Hezbollah.
Less-discussed candidates include the acting chief of Lebanon’s General Security Directorate, Elias Al-Bayssari; MP Ibrahim Kanaan, who resigned from the Free Patriotic Movement to join the Independent Consultative Parliamentary Gathering; and former ambassador Georges Al-Khoury, a retired brigadier general. Al-Khoury has the support of Maronite Patriarchate, Speaker Berri and the Free Patriotic Movement, but the majority of the opposition rejects his candidacy.
MP Neemat Frem, who has presented a political and economic vision for the country, is also a candidate. He is on good terms with the Patriarchate and the opposition. Others include Farid Al-Khazen, who is also on good terms with Berri and close to the Patriarchate, and Ziad Baroud, a human rights activist and former minister of interior who is seen as a consensus candidate.
The parliamentary blocs continued to hold talks on Wednesday afternoon to discuss preferred candidates. Lebanese Forces MP Fadi Karam said: “Starting today, there has been a significant shift toward having Joseph Aoun as a president.”
During a meeting on Wednesday, the Maronite Archbishops Council called for “a national parliamentary awakening that leads tomorrow to the election of a president who brings together the country’s sons and daughters within the framework of national unity, solidarity and reform, allowing Lebanon to regain its leading role in the East.”
The archbishops said: “The opportunity has become appropriate and available for national deliberation on the importance of Lebanon’s progress toward a positive neutrality that saves the country from the damage of conflicts and drives it toward a healthy cycle of one fruitful national life.”
UAE adds 19 individuals, entities to terrorism list over Muslim Brotherhood links
- Designation is part of UAE’s national and international efforts to dismantle terrorist financial networks
LONDON: The UAE designated 19 individuals and entities as terrorists on Wednesday due to their connections to the Muslim Brotherhood, which is classified as a terror group in the UAE.
Abu Dhabi placed 11 individuals and eight entities on the country’s Local Terrorist List, the WAM news agency reported. All the organizations are based in the UK, while the individuals, except two, are Emirati nationals.
The decision is part of the UAE’s national and international efforts to dismantle networks associated with the direct and indirect financing of terrorism, according to WAM.
Egypt and Saudi Arabia also classify the Muslim Brotherhood as a terror group.
The list of individuals as published by WAM includes:
1. Yousuf Hassan Ahmed Al-Mulla — Current nationality: Sweden, former nationality: Liberia.
2. Saeed Khadim Ahmed bin Touq Al-Marri — Nationality: Turkiye/UAE.
3. Ibrahim Ahmed Ibrahim Ali Al-Hammadi — Nationality: Sweden/UAE.
4. Ilham Abdullah Ahmed Al-Hashimi — Nationality: UAE.
5. Jasem Rashid Khalfan Rashid Al-Shamsi — Nationality: UAE.
6. Khaled Obaid Yousuf Buatabh Al-Zaabi — Nationality: UAE.
7. Abdulrahman Hassan Munif Abdullah Hassan Al-Jabri — Nationality: UAE.
8. Humaid Abdullah Abdulrahman Al-Jarman Al-Nuaimi — Nationality: UAE.
9. Abdulrahman Omar Salem Bajbair Al-Hadrami — Nationality: Yemen.
10. Ali Hassan Ali Hussein Al-Hammadi — Nationality: UAE.
11. Mohammed Ali Hassan Ali Al-Hammadi — Nationality: UAE.
The list of entities as published by WAM includes:
1. Cambridge Education and Training Center Ltd. — Based in: UK.
2. IMA6INE Ltd. — Based in: UK.
3. Wembley Tree Ltd. — Based in: UK.
4. Waslaforall — Based in: UK.
5. Future Graduates Ltd. — Based in: UK.
6. Yas for Investment and Real Estate — Based in: UK.
7. Holdco UK Properties Limited — Based in: UK.
8. Nafel Capital — Based in: UK.
Israel military says body of only one hostage found in Gaza
- The troops recovered the body of hostage Youssef Al-Zayadna from an underground tunnel in Rafah
JERUSALEM: The Israeli military clarified on Wednesday that its troops had recovered the body of only one hostage, not two as previously announced by Defense Minister Israel Katz.
In a statement, the military said: “The troops located and recovered the body of hostage Youssef Al-Zayadna from an underground tunnel in the Rafah area of the Gaza Strip and returned his body to Israel.” Katz earlier said that the remains of Zayadna’s son, Hamza, had also been found.
With Hezbollah weakened, Lebanon to hold presidential vote
- Lebanon has not had a president for more than 2 years
- Parliamentary vote takes place amidst historic regional shift
BEIRUT: Lebanon’s parliament will try to elect a president on Thursday, with officials seeing better chances of success in a political landscape shaken by Israel’s war with Hezbollah and the toppling of the group’s ally Bashar Assad in neighboring Syria.
The post, reserved for a Maronite Christian in the country’s sectarian power-sharing system, has been vacant since Michel Aoun’s term ended in October, 2023. None of the political groups in the 128-seat parliament have enough seats to impose their choice, and they have so far been unable to agree on a consensus candidate.
The vote marks the first test of Lebanon’s power balance since the Iran-backed Shiite group Hezbollah — which propelled its then Christian ally Aoun to the presidency in 2016 — emerged badly pummelled from the war with Israel.
It takes place against a backdrop of historic change in the wider Middle East, where the Assad-led Syrian state exercised sway over Lebanon for decades, both directly and through allies such as Hezbollah.
Reflecting the shifts, Hezbollah and its ally the Shiite Amal Movement led by Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri have dropped their insistence on Suleiman Frangieh, their declared candidate for the last two years, and are ready to go with a less divisive figure, three senior sources familiar with their thinking said.
Candidates in focus include army commander General Joseph Aoun — said by Lebanese politicians to enjoy US approval — Jihad Azour, a senior International Monetary Fund official who formerly served as finance minister, and Maj. Gen. Elias Al-Baysari — head of General Security, a state security agency.
Caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati said he felt happy because “God willing, tomorrow we will have a new president,” according to a statement from his office.
French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot also expressed hope in comments to France Inter radio, saying the election was “a prerequisite for the continuation of this dynamic of peace” and also for Lebanon’s economic and social recovery.
However, two of the sources and an analyst cautioned that it was not yet certain any candidate would be elected. To win, a candidate must secure 86 votes in a first round, or 65 in a second round.
Hezbollah still seen with sway
Aoun, head of Lebanon’s US-backed army, would still need 86 votes because his election requires a constitutional amendment, as he is a still-serving state employee, Berri has said.
A State Department spokesperson said it was “up to Lebanon to choose its next president, not the United States or any external actor.”
“We have been consistent in our efforts to press Lebanon to elect a new president, which we see as important to strengthening Lebanon’s political institutions,” the spokesperson said.
Hezbollah official Wafiq Safa said last week there was “no veto” on Aoun. But the sources said Hezbollah, designated a terrorist group by the United States, will not support Aoun.
Aoun has a key role in shoring up the ceasefire brokered by Washington and Paris in November. The terms require the Lebanese military to deploy into south Lebanon as Israeli troops and Hezbollah withdraw forces.
Still reeling from a financial collapse in 2019, Lebanon desperately needs foreign aid to rebuild.
Much of the damage is in Shiite majority areas.
Hezbollah, its supply line to Iran severed by Assad’s ousting, has urged Arab and international support for Lebanon.
Nabil Boumonsef, deputy editor-in-chief of Annahar newspaper, was not certain anyone would be elected, even after the major shift in the balance of power in Lebanon, where Hezbollah’s weapons have long been a source of division.
Underlining the influence Hezbollah and Amal still wield, he said the only way a president could be elected would be if they agreed on Aoun or Azour. But if they tried to install their preferred candidate, this would “sever the oxygen from Lebanon.”
Saudi Minister Faisal bin Farhan said last October that Riyadh had never fully disengaged from Lebanon and that outside countries should not tell Lebanese what to do.
Red Cross urges unhindered aid access to flood-hit and freezing Gaza
- IFRC highlighted the deaths of eight newborn babies who had been living in tents without warmth or protection from rain
Geneva: The Red Cross called Wednesday for safe and unhindered access to Gaza to bring desperately needed aid into the war-torn Palestinian territory wracked by hunger and where babies are freezing to death.
Heavy rain and flooding have ravaged the makeshift shelters in Gaza, leaving thousands with up to 30 centimeters of water inside their damaged tents, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies said.
The dire weather conditions were “exacerbating the unbearable conditions” in Gaza, it said, pointing out that many families were left “clinging on to survival in makeshift camps, without even the most basic necessities, such as blankets.”
Citing the United Nations, the IFRC highlighted the deaths of eight newborn babies who had been living in tents without warmth or protection from the rain and falling temperatures.
Those deaths “underscore the critical severity of the humanitarian crisis there,” IFRC Secretary-General Jagan Chapagain said in a statement.
“I urgently reiterate my call to grant safe and unhindered access to humanitarians to let them provide life-saving assistance,” he said.
“Without safe access — children will freeze to death. Without safe access — families will starve. Without safe access — humanitarian workers can’t save lives.”
Chapagain issued an “urgent plea to all the parties... to put an end to this human suffering. Now.”
The IFRC said the Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) was striving to provide emergency health services and supplies to people in Gaza, with an extra sense of urgency during the cold winter months.
But it warned that “the lack of aid deliveries and access is making providing adequate support all but impossible.”
It also lamented the “continuing attacks on health facilities across the Gaza Strip,” which it said meant people were unable to access the treatment they need.
“In the north of Gaza, there are now no functioning hospitals,” it said.
The IFRC stressed that the closure of the main Rafah border crossing last May had had a dramatic impact on the humanitarian situation, warning that “only a trickle of aid is currently entering Gaza.”
