Egypt Parliament Backs Government in GERD Dispute

An aerial view of the Nile River, agricultural lands and homes from an airplane window on a flight between Cairo and Luxor on Saturday, April 10, 2021. (EPA)
An aerial view of the Nile River, agricultural lands and homes from an airplane window on a flight between Cairo and Luxor on Saturday, April 10, 2021. (EPA)
TT
20

Egypt Parliament Backs Government in GERD Dispute

An aerial view of the Nile River, agricultural lands and homes from an airplane window on a flight between Cairo and Luxor on Saturday, April 10, 2021. (EPA)
An aerial view of the Nile River, agricultural lands and homes from an airplane window on a flight between Cairo and Luxor on Saturday, April 10, 2021. (EPA)

The Egyptian Senate, which is the upper house of the bicameral parliament, has thrown its support behind the government in the dispute over the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) on the Blue Nile.

Following a meeting with Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry on Wednesday, members of the Senate’s foreign affairs committee said they support the decisions that the government would take in case Ethiopia takes a move affecting Egypt’s water security.

The dispute with Ethiopia has recently grown amid Addis Ababa’s insistence to move forward with the scheduled second filling of the dam in July/August despite calls and warnings from both Sudan and Egypt against its “unilateral” move.

Earlier this month, talks hosted in Kinshasa ended with no progress.

Senate member Dr. Abdel-Moneim Said revealed there is an international effort to resume negotiations and resolve the dispute.

He stressed that Cairo will not undermine its interests, and is seeking to resolve the issue diplomatically.

Cairo fears the potential negative impact of GERD on the flow of its annual share of the Nile’s 55.5 billion cubic meters of water especially that it relies on it for more than 90 percent of its water supplies.

Head of the Republican People’s Party and Senate member Hazem Omar said the meeting with Shoukry came in line with the permanent coordination between the executive and legislative bodies to face the current challenges.

The meeting addressed the repercussions that Addis Ababa’s intransigence and unilateral steps would have on the future of development and stability of the Horn of Africa and countries in eastern Africa.

Cairo and Addis Ababa have exchanged accusations over responsibility for the failure of negotiations on GERD.

Shoukry informed the Senate that Addis Ababa has repeatedly rejected several mediations to resolve the issue and insisted to implement its plans.

Cairo and Khartoum seek a legally binding agreement over the operations and filling of the dam, which Addis Ababa says is crucial to its economic development.



Kurdish Fighters Leave Northern City in Syria as Part of Deal with Central Government

A first contingent of Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) fighters leave Aleppo, headed for SDF-controlled northeastern Syria, in Aleppo, Syria, 04 April 2025. (EPA)
A first contingent of Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) fighters leave Aleppo, headed for SDF-controlled northeastern Syria, in Aleppo, Syria, 04 April 2025. (EPA)
TT
20

Kurdish Fighters Leave Northern City in Syria as Part of Deal with Central Government

A first contingent of Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) fighters leave Aleppo, headed for SDF-controlled northeastern Syria, in Aleppo, Syria, 04 April 2025. (EPA)
A first contingent of Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) fighters leave Aleppo, headed for SDF-controlled northeastern Syria, in Aleppo, Syria, 04 April 2025. (EPA)

Scores of US-backed Kurdish fighters left two neighborhoods in Syria’s northern city of Aleppo Friday as part of a deal with the central government in Damascus, which is expanding its authority in the country.

The fighters left the predominantly Kurdish northern neighborhoods of Sheikh Maksoud and Achrafieh, which had been under the control of Kurdish fighters in Aleppo over the past decade.

The deal is a boost to an agreement reached last month between Syria’s interim government and the Kurdish-led authority that controls the country’s northeast. The deal could eventually lead to the merger of the main US-backed force in Syria into the Syrian army.

The withdrawal of fighters from the US-backed and Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) came a day after dozens of prisoners from both sides were freed in Aleppo, Syria’s largest city.

Syria’s state news agency, SANA, reported that government forces were deployed along the road that SDF fighters will use to move between Aleppo and areas east of the Euphrates River, where the Kurdish-led force controls nearly a quarter of Syria.

Sheikh Maksoud and Achrafieh had been under SDF control since 2015 and remained so even when forces of ousted President Bashar al-Assad captured Aleppo in late 2016. The two neighborhoods remained under SDF control when forces loyal to current interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa captured the city in November, and days later captured the capital, Damascus, removing Assad from power.

After being marginalized for decades under the rule of the Assad family rule, the deal signed last month promises Syria’s Kurds “constitutional rights,” including using and teaching their language, which were banned for decades.

Hundreds of thousands of Kurds, who were displaced during Syria’s nearly 14-year civil war, will return to their homes. Thousands of Kurds living in Syria who have been deprived of nationality for decades under Assad will be given the right of citizenship, according to the agreement.

Kurds made up 10% of the country’s prewar population of 23 million. Kurdish leaders say they don’t want full autonomy with their own government and parliament. They want decentralization and room to run their day-to day-affairs.