Egypt Warns Ethiopia against Holding Nile ‘Hostage’

Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry. (AFP file photo)
Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry. (AFP file photo)
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Egypt Warns Ethiopia against Holding Nile ‘Hostage’

Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry. (AFP file photo)
Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry. (AFP file photo)

Egypt warned Ethiopia against prolonging the negotiations on the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), saying it should not continue to build the dam without reaching an agreement that addresses its fears regarding its share of the Nile River.

Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry asserted that his country does not negotiate for the sake of negotiating, stressing that Egypt will not accept the consolidation of the status quo on the ground.

Egypt will not be a hostage to the efforts to impose hegemony on the Nile River, he declared before parliament.

Egypt, Ethiopia, and Sudan have been holding negotiations to resolve the dispute over the GERD for about ten years, without reaching an agreement despite the involvement of the United States, World Bank and African Union.

Egypt and Sudan are demanding a “legally binding” agreement that regulates the filling and operating of the dam, which is built on the main tributary of the Nile, and its reservoir capacity is set to reach about 74 billion cubic meters.

Shoukry explained that Cairo seeks a just and balanced GERD agreement that ensures the preservation of Egypt's interests and water rights.

He pointed out that his country participated in several rounds sponsored by the United States and World Bank, which led to an integrated agreement on the dam, which Egypt initialed.

Ethiopia refused to sign the agreement and proceeded unilaterally to fill the reservoir as a first stage.

Egypt referred the file to the United Nations Security Council, which held a session in June in a historical precedent, to discuss the political and technical implications of GERD.

This is the first time the Security Council discusses an issue related to the use and exploitation of water resources and transboundary rivers.

Shoukry said that this move was followed by a series of negotiations under the auspices of the African Union.

Egypt engaged in the negotiations as a tool to reach a fair agreement that would preserve its water rights, stressed the minister.

Egyptian diplomacy also culminated in two decisions during the Arab League ministerial meeting in 2020 and which expressed Arab solidarity with Cairo’s fight for its water rights.

Shoukry said that state agencies are following up on the developments related to the dam on a daily basis, adding that Egypt is keen on maintaining its relations with its African neighbors, especially Ethiopia.

Unfortunately, Ethiopia is so far unwilling to negotiate a real solution, said Shoukry, stressing that Cairo will continue to work to reach a solution that preserves its water rights.



Israel’s Army Says It Will Fire Air Force Reservists Who Condemned Gaza War

An Israeli army vehicle moves in the Gaza Strip as seen from southern Israel, Jan. 16, 2025. (AP)
An Israeli army vehicle moves in the Gaza Strip as seen from southern Israel, Jan. 16, 2025. (AP)
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Israel’s Army Says It Will Fire Air Force Reservists Who Condemned Gaza War

An Israeli army vehicle moves in the Gaza Strip as seen from southern Israel, Jan. 16, 2025. (AP)
An Israeli army vehicle moves in the Gaza Strip as seen from southern Israel, Jan. 16, 2025. (AP)

Israel's military said Friday it will fire air force reservists who signed an open letter that condemns the war in Gaza for only serving political interests instead of bringing the hostages home.

In a statement to The Associated Press, an army official said there was no room for any individual, including reservists on active duty, “to exploit their military status while simultaneously participating in the fighting,” calling the letter a breach of trust between commanders and subordinates.

The army said it had decided that any active reservist who signed the letter will not be able to continue serving. It did not specify how many people that included or if the firings had begun.

Nearly 1,000 Israeli Air Force reservists and retirees signed the letter, published in Israeli media Thursday, demanding the immediate return of the hostages, even at the cost of ending the fighting.

The letter comes as Israel ramps up its offensive in Gaza, trying to pressure Hamas to agree to free hostages, 59 of whom are still being held, more than half of which are dead. Israel's imposed a blockade on food, fuel and humanitarian aid that has left civilians facing acute shortages as supplies dwindle. It has pledged to seize large parts of the Palestinian territory and establish a new security corridor through it.

While the soldiers who signed the letter didn’t refuse to keep serving, it’s part of a growing number of Israeli soldiers speaking out against the 18-month conflict, some saying they saw or did things that crossed ethical lines.

“It’s completely illogical and irresponsible on behalf of the Israeli policy makers ... risking the lives of the hostages, risking the lives of more soldiers and risking lives of many, many more innocent Palestinians, while it had a very clear alternative,” Guy Poran, a retired Israeli Air Force pilot who spearhead the letter told The AP.

He said he's not aware of anyone who signed the letter being fired, and since it was published, it has gained dozens more signatures.

Israel’s Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu downplayed the letter on Friday, saying it was written by a “small handful of weeds, operated by foreign-funded NGOs whose sole goal is to overthrow the right-wing government.” He said anyone who encourages refusal will be immediately dismissed.

Soldiers are required to steer clear of politics, and they rarely speak out against the army. After Hamas stormed into Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, Israel quickly united behind the war launched against the group. Divisions here have grown as the war progresses, but most criticism has focused on the mounting number of soldiers killed and the failure to bring home hostages, not actions in Gaza.

The war in Gaza shows no signs of slowing.

Since Israel ended an eight-week ceasefire last month, it said it will push further into Gaza until Hamas releases the hostages. More than 1,000 people have been killed in Gaza since the ceasefire collapsed, according to the United Nations.

The Israeli military on Friday issued an urgent warning to residents in several neighborhoods in northern Gaza, calling on them to evacuate immediately. At least 26 people have been killed and more than 100 others wounded in the last 24 hours, according to Gaza's Health Ministry, which doesn't distinguish between civilians and combatants.

Palestinians lined up at a charity kitchen Friday in central Gaza said shortages of food, fuel and other essentials are worsening.

“There is no flour or gas or wood. Everything is expensive and there is no money," said Reem Oweis, a displaced woman from al-Mughraqa in south Gaza, waiting in line for a serving of rice, the only food available.

“I completely rely on charity kitchens. If those charity kitchens close, my children and I will die,” said another displace woman, Nema Faragallah.

Also this week, Brazil's Embassy in the West Bank said it had requested the immediate release of the body of a 17-year-old Palestinian prisoner who died in Israeli custody.

A representative from Brazil's office in Ramallah, told the AP it was helping the family speed up the process to bring Walid Ahmad's body home. Ahmad had a Brazilian passport.

According to an Israeli doctor who observed the autopsy, starvation was likely the primary cause of his death.

Ahmad had been held for six months without being charged. He was extremely malnourished and also showed signs of inflammation of the colon and scabies, said a report written by Dr. Daniel Solomon, who watched the autopsy, conducted by Israeli experts, at the request of the boy’s family.

Israel’s prison service said it operates according to the law and all prisoners are given basic rights.