Head of Egypt's Intelligence Pays Brief Visit to Khartoum

 Head of the transitional sovereign council, Lieutenant General Abdul-Fattah Al-Burhan met Tuesday head of the Egyptian intelligence, Major General Abbas Kamel in Khartoum (SUNA)
Head of the transitional sovereign council, Lieutenant General Abdul-Fattah Al-Burhan met Tuesday head of the Egyptian intelligence, Major General Abbas Kamel in Khartoum (SUNA)
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Head of Egypt's Intelligence Pays Brief Visit to Khartoum

 Head of the transitional sovereign council, Lieutenant General Abdul-Fattah Al-Burhan met Tuesday head of the Egyptian intelligence, Major General Abbas Kamel in Khartoum (SUNA)
Head of the transitional sovereign council, Lieutenant General Abdul-Fattah Al-Burhan met Tuesday head of the Egyptian intelligence, Major General Abbas Kamel in Khartoum (SUNA)

The Head of the General Intelligence Service, Major General Abbas Kamel, landed Tuesday in Khartoum on a brief one-day visit to discuss with Sudanese officials the latest developments of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam.

Kamel transferred a verbal message from Egyptian President Abdul-Fattah al-Sisi to the Head of the Transitional Sovereign Council, Lieutenant General Abdul-Fattah al-Burhan on bilateral relations and ways to support and develop them and the enhancement of the common interests betwen the two countries.

Kamel also held talks with the First Deputy Chairman of the Transitional Sovereign Council, Lieutenant General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo and Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok, on the developments concerning the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam and efforts made to overcome differences through dialogue.

For his part, Burhan expressed his thanks and appreciation to the Egyptian intelligence chief for the visit and conveyed his greetings to the Egyptian leadership.

Sudanese Minister of Irrigation and Water Resources Yasser Abbas conveyed his country’s reservation over the Ethiopian unilateral move of filling the dam before reaching a binding agreement between the three countries, considering the move as a harmful and disturbing precedent in the path of cooperation between the concerned parties.

During talks held Monday on filling and operating the Ethiopian Renaissance Dam at the invitation of South Africa, the current Chairman of the African Union, Khartoum had asked for postponing the negotiations for another week to make consultations.

On Tuesday, Hamdok chaired the first meeting of the High Committee for the Follow up of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam.

The meeting went over Ethiopia's unilateral move of filling the dam, as well as its impact on Sudan and the track of negotiations in the future.



Algeria Tightens Measures to Combat Migrant Smuggling to Europe

A boat for illegal migration in the Mediterranean (circulated)
A boat for illegal migration in the Mediterranean (circulated)
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Algeria Tightens Measures to Combat Migrant Smuggling to Europe

A boat for illegal migration in the Mediterranean (circulated)
A boat for illegal migration in the Mediterranean (circulated)

Algerian authorities launched a new security unit last week to tackle human trafficking and migrant smuggling by sea from the country’s northern shores.

The unit, under the supervision of the Gendarmerie, was given broad powers and resources.

The Gendarmerie said on social media that the unit had dismantled two smuggling networks in Algiers, arrested 10 people, and seized seven boats used to transport migrants to southern Europe.

While the exact timing of the raids was not provided, the Gendarmerie mentioned that the networks were operating in Algiers, Blida (40 km west), and Ain Taya (30 km east).

The Gendarmerie said the new security unit was set up to combat organized crime, particularly illegal migration.

It noted that, through ongoing cooperation with other agencies, including the Birkhadem Investigation Unit and regional Gendarmerie teams in Algiers, three cases were handled.

These involved illegal crossings, mostly related to migrant smuggling, which is punishable under Algerian law. The Gendarmerie also seized boats worth $52,000 and a vehicle valued at around $30,000.

The Gendarmerie said it had referred members of two smuggling networks to the prosecution, without revealing their number. It stressed that efforts to tackle the issue, which has security, social, and economic impacts, would continue using all available resources.

Media reports confirmed that over 20 people were arrested. They had been charging up to 5,000 euros per person to smuggle migrants by sea to the nearest Spanish islands, a journey of 400 to 500 kilometers that takes about 24 hours in calm seas.

According to Spain’s EFE agency, 5,165 illegal migrants have reached the Balearic Islands since the start of the year, mostly from North Africa.

This represents a 100% increase from 2,278 migrants last year.