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Sisi Visits Uganda as Egypt Increases Coordination on Water Security

Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni welcomes Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi in Entebbe on Wednesday. (Egyptian Presidency)
Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni welcomes Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi in Entebbe on Wednesday. (Egyptian Presidency)
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Sisi Visits Uganda as Egypt Increases Coordination on Water Security

Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni welcomes Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi in Entebbe on Wednesday. (Egyptian Presidency)
Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni welcomes Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi in Entebbe on Wednesday. (Egyptian Presidency)

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni discussed Nile water issues and regional security during talks in Entebbe on Wednesday, as Cairo steps up coordination with Nile Basin countries amid ongoing tensions with Ethiopia over the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD).

The visit, which followed a trip by Museveni to Cairo several months ago, comes as Egypt seeks to strengthen political and economic ties with Nile Basin states in support of its water security strategy.

According to a statement from the Egyptian presidency, Sisi praised the growing momentum in relations with Uganda and called for broader cooperation in agriculture, irrigation, healthcare and training programs for Ugandan personnel.

He also stressed the importance of increasing trade and establishing sustainable investment partnerships.

Museveni described cooperation between the two countries as “a model for the desired integration among African states,” according to the statement. He also outlined Uganda’s Vision 2040 development plan and highlighted sectors where Kampala hopes to deepen cooperation with Cairo.

The two leaders exchanged views on regional crises, including conflicts in Sudan, Libya and the Palestinian territories, and emphasized the need for closer coordination on Nile and water-related issues.

Sisi called for neighboring countries to play a constructive role in restoring stability and achieving lasting peace across Africa, while Museveni stressed the importance of African-led solutions that take into account the continent’s particular circumstances and delicate balances.

Former Egyptian assistant foreign minister for African affairs Mona Omar said Egypt now viewed relations with Nile Basin countries as “an absolute priority,” including through investment, joint development projects and capacity-building initiatives.

Speaking to Asharq Al-Awsat, Omar said Uganda held particular importance for Egypt because of historical ties and Cairo’s support for Uganda’s independence movement.

She said water cooperation was a central element of the visit, citing the long-standing presence of an Egyptian technical mission affiliated with Egypt’s irrigation ministry in Uganda.

The mission participates in Nile measurements and water-related projects, including efforts to clear invasive weeds from Lake Victoria to facilitate trade and navigation, she said.

Omar added that discussions also addressed the GERD dispute. She said Uganda does not oppose the construction of the dam but rejects causing harm to downstream countries, a stance Egypt appreciates.

Cairo is seeking broader consensus among Nile Basin countries on reaching a legally binding agreement governing the operation of the dam, which Ethiopia considers essential for development but Egypt and Sudan fear could reduce their water supplies.

The talks also touched on the Entebbe Agreement, a framework accord launched by Ethiopia in 2010 that would revise historical Nile water-sharing arrangements involving Egypt and Sudan.

Ethiopia announced in October 2024 that the agreement had entered into force after ratification by six countries — Ethiopia, Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda and South Sudan — despite continued rejection by Egypt and Sudan.

Relations between Cairo and Kampala have gained momentum since Museveni’s visit to Egypt in August last year, during which several cooperation agreements were signed, Omar said.

She added that 65 Egyptian companies currently operate in Uganda in sectors including energy, infrastructure and food security, alongside cooperation in police and military training programs.

During his visit, Sisi renewed an invitation for Museveni to attend the African Union coordination summit to be hosted by Egypt in June 2026, as Uganda currently chairs the East African Community.

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Arab World

Somalia is in a Deadly Drought again. Most Humanitarian Aid Isn't there this Time

The World Food Program’s Assistant Executive Director for Program Operations, Matthew Hollingworth, talks to civilians during his visit to a camp for the internally displaced people to assess the knock on effects from the escalation in the Middle East, alongside drought and sharp cuts in humanitarian funding that are worsening hunger, in Kahda district of Mogadishu, Somalia May 7, 2026. REUTERS/Feisal Omar
The World Food Program’s Assistant Executive Director for Program Operations, Matthew Hollingworth, talks to civilians during his visit to a camp for the internally displaced people to assess the knock on effects from the escalation in the Middle East, alongside drought and sharp cuts in humanitarian funding that are worsening hunger, in Kahda district of Mogadishu, Somalia May 7, 2026. REUTERS/Feisal Omar
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Somalia is in a Deadly Drought again. Most Humanitarian Aid Isn't there this Time

The World Food Program’s Assistant Executive Director for Program Operations, Matthew Hollingworth, talks to civilians during his visit to a camp for the internally displaced people to assess the knock on effects from the escalation in the Middle East, alongside drought and sharp cuts in humanitarian funding that are worsening hunger, in Kahda district of Mogadishu, Somalia May 7, 2026. REUTERS/Feisal Omar
The World Food Program’s Assistant Executive Director for Program Operations, Matthew Hollingworth, talks to civilians during his visit to a camp for the internally displaced people to assess the knock on effects from the escalation in the Middle East, alongside drought and sharp cuts in humanitarian funding that are worsening hunger, in Kahda district of Mogadishu, Somalia May 7, 2026. REUTERS/Feisal Omar

Most of Abdi Ahmed Farah’s hundreds of goats have died. It has not rained steadily in this part of Somalia for three years, something the 70-year-old never thought possible.

He is in debt from buying water. The reservoir outside his tent is nearly empty. His family is down to one meal a day: rice with sugar and oil. The youngest of his 22 children was born three weeks ago and his wife produces only occasional drops of breast milk.

“I have considered abandoning my family because I cannot provide for them,” said Farah, sitting in front of dwindling food supplies, as if on guard.

Yet another drought is affecting millions of people across Somalia, one of the world's most vulnerable countries to climate shocks. Some rivers are dry. Crops have withered. Experts say the drought could be among the worst in Somali history, The Associated Press said.

The crisis is compounded by aid cuts, most dramatically by the Trump administration, and rising prices from the Iran war. Somalia buys most of its fuel from the Middle East, and 70% of its food is imported.

Production of staple crops of maize and sorghum in the October-December rainy season was the lowest on record in Somalia, according to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization.

Food security experts warn that nearly a half-million children might face severe acute malnutrition, the harshest kind. That would be higher than the number of children requiring treatment for it during droughts in 2011 and 2022, according to UNICEF.

‘It’s a repeated climate shock' "2026 is the worst year on record for Somalia in terms of drought,” said Hameed Nuru, the UN World Food Program director for Somalia. “Children have started dying.”

The Somali government and United Nations estimate that 6.5 million people face crisis levels of hunger, representing a third of the country’s population and a 25% increase since January.

Aid agencies are trying to maximize resources, and the Somali diaspora is sending money to help, but humanitarian workers warn it is not enough.

“This drought is not just another cycle of dry season. It’s a repeated climate shock with shrinking humanitarian support,” said Mohamed Assair, a manager with Save the Children in Puntland, a semi-autonomous region.

People drank dirty rainwater and got sick

Farah once had 680 goats, but a lack of food and water as well as diseases exacerbated by drought have claimed all but 110 of them, barely clinging to life.

“There is no market for my goats because they are so thin. Previously we would trade them for rice, but now we can’t,” he said. Farah’s family has been at a site outside Usgure village for 10 days. Almost a dozen goat carcasses lie nearby.

In Usgure, home to 700 families, community leader Abshir Hirsi Ali said the local economy has collapsed because they rely on pastoralists like Farah. Shops have closed and food rations have run low.

A recent, brief shower brought puddles of dirty rainwater. “Some families were so desperate they drank it ... now there is a high number of people with fever,” Ali said.

Save the Children occasionally brings free water to Usgure, but private water trucks have quadrupled their prices and the cost of a 50-kilogram (110-pound) bag of flour has increased by a third, to $40.

“I’m not only afraid for my family but the future of the whole village,” said Muhubo Tahir Omar, a 47-year-old mother of 11 children.

Omar, like other parents, had sold her goats to pay for school fees, “but when we didn’t pay, the teachers left.” Her last goat is now sick.

‘Conflict made our situation even worse’ Decades of conflict in Somalia have displaced millions of people. The drought has displaced another 200,000 this year, the UN estimates.

Some families flee across harsh landscapes with limited supplies.

“People are on the move ... and when people move, people die,” said Kevin Mackey, the Somalia director for humanitarian group World Vision. He recently met people who had walked for nine days to get aid in Dollow in the south.

Around 80 families live in a displacement camp outside Shahda village in Puntland.

Shukri, a 20-year-old mother of four, usually can eke out one meal a day from handouts. Now there is nothing to eat and limited access to clean water.

“The children got diarrhea (from dirty water) and malnourishment worsened,” said Shukri, who gave only her first name. “I know a few people who have died.”

Many people head to Mogadishu, the capital, where food also remains scarce.

Fadumo, a 45-year-old mother of seven, moved there from Lower Shabelle, where livelihoods were already threatened by al-Qaeda-linked al-Shabab militants.

“The water sources we depended on for farming, including the river, dried up,” Fadumo said. “Conflict made our situation even worse, forcing us to flee."

‘The outlook is deeply concerning’ Drought ravaged Somalia in 2022 and an estimated 36,000 people died, according to the UN. Now the kind of aid that was rushed to respond to such crises is shrinking.

“Unless there is a sudden and substantial response from donors, the outlook is deeply concerning. A drought of similar severity in 2022 received a response five times greater than what we are seeing,” said Antoine Grand, head of the International Committee of the Red Cross in Somalia.

Aid funding to Somalia dropped to $531 million in 2025 in large part because of aid cuts by the United States, which had been Somalia's top donor. In 2022, aid funding was nearly five times as much at $2.38 billion.

WFP said it intended to help 2 million people with food aid this year but has reached only 300,000 because of funding gaps.

A center at the hospital in Qardho, Puntland, treats children with severe acute malnutrition. But therapeutic milk is now rarely in stock, and nurses resort to homemade alternatives such as cow's milk, said director Shamis Abdirahman.

The center receives around 15 children a month, but they expect more as displaced people arrive.

One 4-year-old, Farhia, weighs a scant 7.5 kilograms (16.5 pounds). Her eyes are sunken and her bones are prominent under her skin.

Her family fled to Qardho when all of their goats died, said her mother, Najma.

“I don’t know what to hope for, or see how we can get back to what we had,” she said.

Arab World

100 Days After His Assassination, Public Pressure Mounts to Reveal Killers of Saif al-Islam Gaddafi

Saif al-Islam Gaddafi seated inside an aircraft in Zintan on Nov. 19, 2011. (Reuters) 
Saif al-Islam Gaddafi seated inside an aircraft in Zintan on Nov. 19, 2011. (Reuters) 
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100 Days After His Assassination, Public Pressure Mounts to Reveal Killers of Saif al-Islam Gaddafi

Saif al-Islam Gaddafi seated inside an aircraft in Zintan on Nov. 19, 2011. (Reuters) 
Saif al-Islam Gaddafi seated inside an aircraft in Zintan on Nov. 19, 2011. (Reuters) 

Legal moves and public pressure inside Libya, particularly from supporters of the former regime, have intensified in recent weeks, demanding that authorities disclose the circumstances surrounding the killing of Saif al-Islam Gaddafi.

Saif al-Islam, son of Libya’s late leader Moammar Gaddafi, was killed in the western city of Zintan on Feb. 3, 100 days ago.

Since Libyan Attorney General al-Siddiq al-Sour announced on March 5 that three suspects had been identified in connection with the crime - without revealing their names - public calls have grown for the full investigation findings to be released, for those behind the incident to be identified, and for all those involved to be brought to trial in order to ensure transparency and justice.

A Libyan source familiar with the matter in the capital, Tripoli, confirmed that new legal efforts are underway in the case.

Asharq Al-Awsat learned that Khaled al-Zaidi, head of the defense team in the Saif al-Islam assassination case, visited the office of the head of the Supreme Judicial Council, counselor Abdullah Abu Rzeiza, in Tripoli on Sunday morning. No details were disclosed about the visit or the issues discussed.

The same source, who requested anonymity, said that “these legal moves could lead to positive results and developments that may help uncover the truth and push the case toward greater clarity in the coming period,” without elaborating further.

Additionally, an initiative known as the “National Truth Committee on the Saif al-Islam Gaddafi Case” launched an online public petition calling on the attorney general to disclose details of the crime and announce the investigation results publicly, stressing the need to uphold the law and ensure the principles of justice.

The petition also called for legal measures against the three individuals referred to in the attorney general’s office statement, as well as an expansion of the investigation to include anyone who planned, participated in, financed or assisted in carrying out the crime.

At the same time, public pressure has increased across Libya. The Conference of Social and Political Activities and Civil Society Institutions in Fezzan called on the attorney general to clarify the reasons behind the delay in arresting the suspects, saying the continued ambiguity has raised widespread questions among the public.

Political activist Dr. Khaled al-Hijazi, who is close to the former regime, said the public pressure was “logical,” given that “the assassination of Saif al-Islam is a public opinion issue that cannot be ignored or covered up.”

He told Asharq Al-Awsat that “the importance of the case is compounded by its connection to a public political figure who previously ran in a presidential race and enjoys significant popular support inside the country.”

A source in the public prosecution office had previously told Asharq Al-Awsat that investigations into the case were still ongoing, in response to unofficial accounts circulating in Libya regarding the identities and regional affiliations of the perpetrators.

 

 

Arab World

Iraqi Parliament Set to Vote on Al-Zaidi's Government

An Iraqi parliament session in Baghdad, March 2026. (INA)
An Iraqi parliament session in Baghdad, March 2026. (INA)
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Iraqi Parliament Set to Vote on Al-Zaidi's Government

An Iraqi parliament session in Baghdad, March 2026. (INA)
An Iraqi parliament session in Baghdad, March 2026. (INA)

Iraq’s parliament is scheduled to vote on Thursday on the cabinet lineup proposed by Prime Minister-designate Ali Falih Al-Zaidi, amid ongoing political disputes over key ministries and newly proposed posts.

Parliament’s media office said the agenda for session No. 24 includes a single item: a vote on “the government program and cabinet of Prime Minister-designate Ali Falih Al-Zaidi,” signaling efforts by political blocs to move forward with approving the new government despite lingering divisions, particularly within the Shiite Coordination Framework alliance.

Political and parliamentary sources said negotiations were continuing over several sovereign ministries, four deputy prime minister posts and two proposed new ministries, as pressure mounted to finalize the government before the Eid holiday to avoid a political vacuum or possible security escalation.

A source familiar with the talks told Asharq Al-Awsat that most lawmakers had not yet reviewed the résumés of ministerial nominees, despite constitutional requirements that they be distributed to parliament members before the confidence vote.

“Most lawmakers are not part of the negotiations taking place among bloc leaders, which are focused mainly on dividing ministerial quotas under the points system, while disagreements continue over some sensitive positions,” the source said.

Despite a relatively calm political atmosphere ahead of the session, political sources spoke of possible “last-minute surprises,” citing disputes within some parties over government priorities, particularly the issue of restricting weapons to state control.

A politician familiar with the negotiations noted that some leaders within the Coordination Framework had become less enthusiastic about backing Al-Zaidi than they were at the start of his nomination process, partly because of his pledge to place all weapons under state authority and concerns over his future relationship with armed factions allied to the coalition.

Some factions believe Al-Zaidi enjoys “clear international and American support,” the source said, referring to statements by Western officials in recent weeks that have fueled fears among some political groups that the next government could adopt a tougher stance on weapons outside state control.

Local media reports said resistance by some armed factions to disarm was one of the main reasons for delays in finalizing the cabinet, while political analysts also pointed to disputes among parties over the allocation of ministries.

A committee formed by the Coordination Framework has discussed the issue of weapons control with Al-Zaidi, while some armed groups continue to reject disarmament because of uncertainty over the future of their arsenals, the source added.

On the Sunni side, political factions appeared close to finalizing their ministerial share. Media linked to the Taqaddum party led by Mohammed Al-Halbousi circulated names of nominees and details of the distribution of ministries among Sunni blocs.

According to the reports, Taqaddum would receive the education and industry ministries, in addition to a deputy prime minister post, while the commerce ministry would go to the Al-Siyada party led by Khamis Al-Khanjar. The defense ministry would be assigned to the Hasm alliance headed by Thabit Al-Abbasi, and the planning ministry to the party of Muthanna Al-Samarrai.

Among Kurdish parties, there are signs that the Kurdistan Democratic Party would receive the foreign ministry and a deputy prime minister position, while the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan would take the construction and justice ministries.

In his first public comments on the government formation process, Al-Zaidi said he would “not respond to any personal demands” while selecting ministers, adding that he had secured Kurdish backing following meetings in Erbil.

Al-Zaidi said he aimed to form “a strong and solid economic government,” signaling that economic and development issues would be prioritized by his cabinet.