Egypt Participates in Ghanaian President’s Inauguration Ceremony

Ghanaian President Nana Akufo-Addo, new chairman of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), speaks to journalists after a consultative meeting in Accra, Ghana September 15, 2020. REUTERS/Francis Kokoroko//File Photo
Ghanaian President Nana Akufo-Addo, new chairman of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), speaks to journalists after a consultative meeting in Accra, Ghana September 15, 2020. REUTERS/Francis Kokoroko//File Photo
TT

Egypt Participates in Ghanaian President’s Inauguration Ceremony

Ghanaian President Nana Akufo-Addo, new chairman of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), speaks to journalists after a consultative meeting in Accra, Ghana September 15, 2020. REUTERS/Francis Kokoroko//File Photo
Ghanaian President Nana Akufo-Addo, new chairman of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), speaks to journalists after a consultative meeting in Accra, Ghana September 15, 2020. REUTERS/Francis Kokoroko//File Photo

Egyptian ambassador to Accra Emad Hanna has attended the swearing-in ceremony of Ghana’s President Nana Akufo-Addo for the second term on Thursday, according to the Egyptian Foreign Ministry.

The ministry stated that Hanna attended the event upon the request of Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El Sisi to convey his greetings to his Ghanaian counterpart.

Egypt’s invitation to participate in the presidential inauguration ceremony reflects the deep-rooted friendship and cooperation between the Egyptian and Ghanaian peoples and presidents, as well as the appreciation of the significance of Egypt’s role at the continental and international levels, the statement read.

The ministry also pointed out that this participation indicates a similar vision of both political leaderships regarding many African issues of mutual concern.

These include achieving continental integration through the optimal benefit from African energies and resources and supporting efforts to launch the continental free trade area with the permanent headquarters in Accra.

It is noteworthy that Egypt had played an active role during its African Union presidency to push forward the implementation of the trade area, being certain of the pivotal turning point such an agreement could bring about in line with the 2063 Agenda.



Report: Hamas Tried to Convince Iran to Join Oct. 7 Attack

Hamas leader Yahya al-Sinwar. (AFP file photo)
Hamas leader Yahya al-Sinwar. (AFP file photo)
TT

Report: Hamas Tried to Convince Iran to Join Oct. 7 Attack

Hamas leader Yahya al-Sinwar. (AFP file photo)
Hamas leader Yahya al-Sinwar. (AFP file photo)

The minutes of 10 meetings among Hamas’s top leaders showed that the Palestinian armed group had avoided escalation several times since 2021 as it sought Iran’s support to launch a large assault on Israel, The New York Times reported on Saturday.

A report by Ronen Bergman, Adam Rasgon and Patrick Kingsley, said that for more than two years, Hamas leader Yahya al-Sinwar huddled with his top commanders and plotted what they hoped would be the most devastating and destabilizing attack on Israel in the group’s four-decade history.

The documents, which represent a breakthrough in understanding Hamas, also show extensive efforts to deceive Israel about its intentions as the group laid the groundwork for a bold assault and a regional conflagration that Sinwar hoped would cause Israel to “collapse.”

The documents consist of minutes from 10 secret planning meetings of a small group of Hamas political and military leaders in the run-up to the attack, on Oct. 7, 2023. The minutes include 30 pages of previously undisclosed details about the way Hamas’s leadership works and the preparations that went into its attack.

The documents, which were verified by The New York Times, lay out the main strategies and assessments of the leadership group.

Hamas initially planned to carry out the attack, which it code-named “the big project,” in the fall of 2022. But it delayed executing the plan as it tried to persuade Iran and Hezbollah to participate.

Also, as they prepared arguments aimed at Hezbollah, the Hamas leaders said that Israel’s “internal situation” — an apparent reference to turmoil over Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s contentious plans to overhaul the judiciary — was among the reasons they were “compelled to move toward a strategic battle.”

In July 2023, Hamas dispatched a top official to Lebanon, where he met with a senior Iranian commander and requested help with striking sensitive sites at the start of the assault.

The senior Iranian commander told Hamas that Tehran and Hezbollah were supportive in principle, but needed more time to prepare; the minutes do not say how detailed a plan was presented by Hamas to its allies.

The documents also say that Hamas planned to discuss the attack in more detail at a subsequent meeting with Hassan Nasrallah, Hezbollah’s leader at the time, but do not clarify whether the discussion happened.

Hamas felt assured of its allies’ general support, but concluded it might need to go ahead without their full involvement — in part to stop Israel from deploying an advanced new air-defense system before the assault took place.