Egypt Reiterates Rejection of Plots to ‘Displace Palestinians’

Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry met with Kuwaiti Foreign Minister Abdullah Ali Alyahya on Friday night (Egyptian Foreign Ministry)
Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry met with Kuwaiti Foreign Minister Abdullah Ali Alyahya on Friday night (Egyptian Foreign Ministry)
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Egypt Reiterates Rejection of Plots to ‘Displace Palestinians’

Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry met with Kuwaiti Foreign Minister Abdullah Ali Alyahya on Friday night (Egyptian Foreign Ministry)
Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry met with Kuwaiti Foreign Minister Abdullah Ali Alyahya on Friday night (Egyptian Foreign Ministry)

Egypt reiterated on several occasions in the past two days its rejection of plots to forcibly displace the Palestinians, warning of the dangers of any Israeli invasion of Palestinian Rafah.
In a series of meetings held on the sidelines of his participation in the Munich Security Conference, Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry affirmed his country’s rejection of forced displacement of Palestinians from their lands.
On Friday, Egypt had categorically denied allegations of participating in any process involving the displacement of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip into the Sinai Peninsula, the country's State Information Service (SIS) said.
“Egypt's decisive stance since the beginning of the aggression ... is to completely reject any forced or voluntary displacement of Palestinian brothers from the Gaza Strip, especially to Egyptian territory,” Diaa Rashwan, the chairperson of the Egyptian State Information Service stated.
He added that such a scenario would entail “a definite liquidation of the Palestinian cause and a direct threat to Egyptian sovereignty and national security.”
This is “a red line and Cairo has the means to deal with it immediately and effectively,” Rashwan stressed.
Also, he said that “Egypt, with its declared and frank position, cannot take any actions on its territory that contradict this stance and give the impression – [that could be] falsely promoted by some - that it is participating in the crime of displacement advocated for by some Israeli parties.”
The SIS chief asserted that Egypt views forced displacement as a grave war crime condemned by international humanitarian law and “Egypt will never be part of it. On the contrary, it will do everything that must be done to stop it and prevent those who seek to commit it from carrying it out.”
Later during a meeting with Lieutenant General Hanen Ould Sidi, the Mauritanian Defense Minister, Shoukry reaffirmed Egypt's firm position calling for the need to avoid risks related to expanding the circle of conflict, and warned of the dangers of any Israeli invasion of Palestinian Rafah, which would have extremely negative repercussions at all levels.
On Friday night, Shoukry and Kuwaiti Foreign Minister, Abdullah Ali Alyahya, had exchanged assessments regarding the increasing tension in the region and the situation in the Gaza Strip, as they agreed on the necessity of continuing the necessary action and communication with various parties to prevent the expansion of the cycle of violence and conflict in the region.
An Egyptian Foreign Ministry statement said the two sides also agreed to intensify coordination and joint action during the coming period to curb the crisis in the Gaza Strip and contain its repercussions, as well as to consolidate joint Arab action mechanisms in order to support the pillars of regional security and stability.



Egypt Strengthens Cooperation with Africa to Tackle Water Challenges

Egypt affirms that water issues are a shared challenge growing more severe due to climate change (Photo by Abdel Fattah Farag)
Egypt affirms that water issues are a shared challenge growing more severe due to climate change (Photo by Abdel Fattah Farag)
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Egypt Strengthens Cooperation with Africa to Tackle Water Challenges

Egypt affirms that water issues are a shared challenge growing more severe due to climate change (Photo by Abdel Fattah Farag)
Egypt affirms that water issues are a shared challenge growing more severe due to climate change (Photo by Abdel Fattah Farag)

Egypt is continuing to strengthen its cooperation with African nations to confront the pressing challenges of water and food security.

“Water issues are a shared challenge that grows more severe due to climate change and resource scarcity, especially given Egypt’s near-total dependence on Nile water,” Egyptian Minister of Irrigation Hani Sewilam said, according to an official statement by the Egyptian Cabinet on Friday.

Speaking on behalf of the Prime Minister during a celebration at the Djibouti Embassy in Cairo marking Djibouti’s 48th independence anniversary, Sewilam emphasized that cross-border cooperation, rooted in principles of international law, is the optimal path to ensure sustainable water resources.

Egypt frequently raises the issue of water security, particularly amid the ongoing crisis over the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam, which Ethiopia has built on the main tributary of the Nile since 2011 to generate electricity. Egypt and Sudan fear it will impact their water shares.

Ambassador Salah Halima, former Assistant Foreign Minister and Deputy Chairman of the Egyptian Council for African Affairs, stressed that water security is closely linked to river management and dam operations. He told Asharq Al-Awsat that Egypt consistently underscores the importance of respecting international laws and agreements on managing water resources and criticized Ethiopia’s unilateral actions to impose a de facto situation regarding the dam.

Halima added that achieving water security requires cooperation among states in managing water resources and constructing dams, noting that Egypt has valuable experience African nations can benefit from.

Egypt faces a water deficit estimated at 30 billion cubic meters annually. Its share of Nile water amounts to 55.5 billion cubic meters per year, while consumption exceeds 85 billion cubic meters. The shortfall is covered by groundwater extraction, seawater desalination projects, and recycling agricultural drainage water, according to the Ministry of Irrigation.

On Friday, Sewilam highlighted the longstanding ties between Egypt and Djibouti as an example of cooperation amid complex regional and global challenges requiring greater unity and shared vision. He noted that the regional and international context demands an understanding of the magnitude of challenges, ranging from security and peace to sustainable development and socio-economic stability, especially in the Arab and African regions.

Egypt is finalizing a memorandum of understanding with Djibouti’s Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources to cooperate in fields such as integrated water resources management, desalination technologies, groundwater recharge, capacity building, knowledge exchange, and joint research.

In parallel, Egyptian Minister of Agriculture Alaa Farouk reaffirmed Egypt’s commitment to working with African countries to develop more efficient, inclusive, and sustainable agricultural value chains. Speaking during FAO meetings in Rome, he said that strengthening these chains is central to food security, economic growth, and job creation, particularly in rural areas. Farouk also discussed promoting Egyptian investment in Africa to boost agricultural development and food security across the continent.