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Sisi Stresses to Macron Egypt’s Commitment to Reach Legal Binding Agreement on GERD

Sisi and Macron meet in Paris on Monday. (AFP)
Sisi and Macron meet in Paris on Monday. (AFP)
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Sisi Stresses to Macron Egypt’s Commitment to Reach Legal Binding Agreement on GERD

Sisi and Macron meet in Paris on Monday. (AFP)
Sisi and Macron meet in Paris on Monday. (AFP)

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi reiterated on Tuesday his country’s determination to preserve its water rights, stressing that it will not allow its interests to be violated.

Cairo is determined to reach a “legal” and “fair” agreement over the filling and operation of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), he stated during a meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris.

Sisi was in the French capital to participate, along with African leaders and chiefs of global financial institutions, in twin summit meetings that will seek to help Sudan into a new democratic era and provide Africa with critical financing swept away by the Covid-19 pandemic.

During his bilateral meetings, Sisi said he was keen to address the dispute with Addis Ababa over the GERD.

According to presidential spokesman Bassam Rady, Sisi highlighted Egypt’s keenness to consolidate and deepen the extended strategic partnership with France, as an “important pillar to preserve security and stability in the Middle East region.”

The president said he looks forward to maximize bilateral coordination and consultations on various regional issues, as well as security and military cooperation, in light of the great regional challenges, Rady added.

Sisi also met with head of Sudan’s Transitional Sovereign Council Lt. Gen. Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, during which they agreed on the utmost importance of the water issue and considered GERD “a matter of national security.”

Addis Ababa has been building the dam on the main tributary of the Nile since 2011, and its Ministry of Water, Irrigation, and Energy announced the completion of about 78 percent of the construction so far.

It announced in 2020 that it had completed the first phase of filling the dam, achieving its target of 4.9 billion cubic meters, which allowed the testing of the first two turbines of the dam. This year, it is targeting filling an additional 13.5 billion cubic meters.

The dam is expected to become the largest hydroelectric power station in Africa, with an expected capacity of 6,500 megawatts, to meet the needs of Ethiopia’s 110 million people.

The two downstream countries, Sudan and Egypt, however, insist on reaching a legally binding agreement that preserves their water rights and averts further tensions and instability in the region.

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Arab World

Lebanon Rejects Iran Negotiating on Its Behalf

People gather at the scene of an Israeli airstrike in the Corniche al-Mazraa neighborhood of Beirut, Lebanon 08 April 2026. (EPA)
People gather at the scene of an Israeli airstrike in the Corniche al-Mazraa neighborhood of Beirut, Lebanon 08 April 2026. (EPA)
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Lebanon Rejects Iran Negotiating on Its Behalf

People gather at the scene of an Israeli airstrike in the Corniche al-Mazraa neighborhood of Beirut, Lebanon 08 April 2026. (EPA)
People gather at the scene of an Israeli airstrike in the Corniche al-Mazraa neighborhood of Beirut, Lebanon 08 April 2026. (EPA)

Lebanon was left outside contacts that produced a US-Iran ceasefire deal, despite reports it would be included and moves by Iran and Hezbollah suggesting otherwise.

Hezbollah halted its military operations before the deal was announced early on Wednesday, while Lebanese officials scrambled to contact countries involved in the issue to clarify the situation.

Prime Minister Nawaf Salam told Asharq Al-Awsat that Lebanon would not accept anyone negotiating on its behalf.

President Joseph Aoun welcomed the US-Iran announcement of a 15-day ceasefire and praised efforts by all parties that helped secure the agreement, particularly Pakistan, Egypt, and Türkiye.

He said he hoped it would mark a first step toward a final, comprehensive deal that addresses the drivers of conflict in the region, safeguarding the sovereignty of all states.

Aoun said violence was not an effective means to resolve disputes and that governments should work to ensure a free and dignified life for their people, not push them toward futile and needless death.

He added that the Lebanese state would continue efforts to ensure any regional calm extends to Lebanon on a firm and lasting basis.

Aoun affirmed that the efforts are in line with principles agreed upon by the Lebanese: full sovereignty over all territory, liberation from any occupation, and the exclusive right to wage war, maintain peace, and use legitimate force, resting with constitutional institutions alone.

Responsibility for any negotiations to secure Lebanon’s national interest lies solely with the Lebanese state, he said.

Berri: Lebanon included

Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri told Asharq Al-Awsat that Lebanon was covered by the ceasefire agreement with Iran, but said Israel had not complied with it across Lebanon so far, in breach of the deal.

Berri said the agreement clearly included Lebanon and that this was what should be implemented. He said he had contacted the Pakistani side to inform it of Tel Aviv’s failure to abide by the ceasefire and asked it to engage the United States to pressure Israel.

He said he remained in contact with several parties involved and had received assurances that Lebanon was part of the agreement, though he did not rule out that Israel could seek to “undermine this agreement as the party most harmed by it.”

Salam: The state alone negotiates

In his first comment on the ceasefire and the debate over whether Lebanon was included, Salam said: “No one negotiates over Lebanon except the Lebanese state.”

He declined to elaborate on ongoing contacts to secure a ceasefire in Lebanon, saying only that the state was carrying out its duties and mobilizing all its capabilities to pull the country out of a crisis imposed on it.

“With the announcement of an agreement between the US and Iran, through appreciated Pakistani efforts, we are intensifying our contacts and our political and diplomatic efforts to secure a ceasefire in Lebanon,” said Salam.

“I also stress that no one negotiates in the name of Lebanon except the Lebanese state, through its constitutional institutions, in a way that safeguards its sovereignty and the interests of its people,” he added.

Foreign Ministry: One voice

For its part, Lebanon’s Foreign Ministry welcomed the announcement of the two-week ceasefire between Iran and the US as a step toward de-escalation and regional stability, but stressed that no party has the right to negotiate on the country’s behalf.

“Lebanon unequivocally affirms that it speaks with one voice — its own — and that no party has the right to negotiate on its behalf except the Lebanese state,” the ministry said in a statement.

“Any such action constitutes a direct violation of its sovereignty and national decision-making,” it added, noting that Lebanon has previously announced its readiness for direct negotiations with Israel, with civilian participation and under international auspices.

The ministry reiterated that Lebanon’s sovereignty is indivisible and not negotiable, and that its national choices, security, and political future are determined exclusively by its constitutional institutions, free from any external interference.

Arab World

Iran Guards Threaten Response if Israel Does Not Cease Lebanon ‘Aggression’

First responders work at the site of an Israeli airstrike that struck an apartment building in Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, April 8, 2026. (AP)
First responders work at the site of an Israeli airstrike that struck an apartment building in Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, April 8, 2026. (AP)
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Iran Guards Threaten Response if Israel Does Not Cease Lebanon ‘Aggression’

First responders work at the site of an Israeli airstrike that struck an apartment building in Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, April 8, 2026. (AP)
First responders work at the site of an Israeli airstrike that struck an apartment building in Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, April 8, 2026. (AP)

Iran's Revolutionary Guards warned on Wednesday they would respond if Israel did not cease attacks on Lebanon as deadly strikes killed hundreds of people a day after a ceasefire was agreed between the United States and Iran.

"We issue a firm warning to the United States, which violates treaties, and to its Zionist ally, its executioner: if the aggression against beloved Lebanon does not cease immediately, we will fulfil our duty and deliver a response," the Guards said in a statement carried on state TV, using a reference to Israel.

Israel says the US-Iran truce does not include Lebanon, which was drawn into the war after Iran-backed group Hezbollah launched attacks on Israel.

Israeli strikes hit several dense commercial and residential areas in central Beirut without warning on Wednesday afternoon, hours after the ceasefire was announced. Lebanon’s health ministry said at least 250 people were killed and 700 were wounded.

US President Donald Trump told PBS News Hour that Lebanon was not included in the deal because of Hezbollah. When asked about Israel’s latest strikes, he said, "That’s a separate skirmish."

Arab World

Hezbollah Says Has Right to Respond After Deadly Israeli Strikes on Lebanon

Firefighters attempt to extinguish a fire following an Israeli strike at the Corniche al-Mazraa neighborhood of Beirut on April 8, 2026. (AFP)
Firefighters attempt to extinguish a fire following an Israeli strike at the Corniche al-Mazraa neighborhood of Beirut on April 8, 2026. (AFP)
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Hezbollah Says Has Right to Respond After Deadly Israeli Strikes on Lebanon

Firefighters attempt to extinguish a fire following an Israeli strike at the Corniche al-Mazraa neighborhood of Beirut on April 8, 2026. (AFP)
Firefighters attempt to extinguish a fire following an Israeli strike at the Corniche al-Mazraa neighborhood of Beirut on April 8, 2026. (AFP)

Hezbollah said Wednesday it has a "right" to respond to Israel's deadly wave of strikes across Lebanon, which authorities said left at least 250 people dead and more than 720 wounded.

"We affirm that the blood of the martyrs and the wounded will not be shed in vain, and that today's massacres, like all acts of aggression and savage crimes, confirm our natural and legal right to resist the occupation and respond to its aggression," the Iran-backed movement said in a statement.

Israeli strikes hit several dense commercial and residential areas in central Beirut without warning on Wednesday afternoon, hours after a ceasefire was announced in the US-Israeli war with Iran.

US President Donald Trump told PBS News Hour that Lebanon was not included in the deal because of Hezbollah. When asked about Israel’s latest strikes, he said, "That’s a separate skirmish."

Israel had said the agreement does not extend to its war with Hezbollah, although mediator Pakistan said it does.