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Arab World

Somalia Calls for Arab Solidarity to Face 'Ethiopia's Plan' in Red Sea

Arab League Sec-Gen Aboul Gheit during a virtual Arab ministerial meeting (Arab League)
Arab League Sec-Gen Aboul Gheit during a virtual Arab ministerial meeting (Arab League)
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Somalia Calls for Arab Solidarity to Face 'Ethiopia's Plan' in Red Sea

Arab League Sec-Gen Aboul Gheit during a virtual Arab ministerial meeting (Arab League)
Arab League Sec-Gen Aboul Gheit during a virtual Arab ministerial meeting (Arab League)

Somalia called on the Arab foreign ministers to "unite and stand together" to "Ethiopia's plan" to control the entrances to the Red Sea.

Prime Minister Hamza Abdi Barre asserted that the "Somaliland" region is "an integral part of the Federal Republic of Somalia."

Speaking at the extraordinary session of the Arab League at the ministerial level, Barre denounced the memorandum of understanding (MoU) between Somaliland and Ethiopia.

He described the deal as "illegal" and a "flagrant violation of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Somalia, the principles of international law, and good-neighborly relations."

On Jan. 01, Somaliland signed a deal with Ethiopia, granting Addis Ababa a lease for sea access to over 20 km for 50 years.

Somaliland, a former British protectorate, declared independence from Somalia in 1991, but the move was not recognized internationally.

The Mogadishu government said it would address this agreement by all legal means, denouncing the "a blatant violation of its sovereignty."

Barre rejected Ethiopia's "illegal" move, saying his country vehemently denied the deal, which threatens Somalia's national interests, sovereignty, and unity and constitutes a direct threat to Arab national security and navigation in the Red Sea and the Bab al-Mandab Strait.

He warned that the Ethiopian move was a well-thought-out plan that exacerbated the situation in the Bab al-Mandab Strait and portended dire consequences for Arab countries, which required unity to activate the mechanisms of joint Arab action.

The PM urged ministers to take serious steps to confront interference in Arab affairs and respect countries' sovereignty and international laws.

He warned that Ethiopia aims to create a new demographic reality in the region by implementing a dangerous plan to control the entrances to the Red Sea and harm global trade and navigation.

Somalia "is looking forward to Arab support for its position rejecting this step," said the premier, reiterating that "Somalia will not accept" any encroachment on its territory.

For his part, Arab League Sec-Gen Ahmed Aboul Gheit denounced the agreement between Ethiopia and the Somaliland region, saying it was "a blatant coup against stable Arab, African and international principles, and a clear violation of international law and applicable international agreements."

He stressed the rejection of any agreements or memorandums of understanding that violate or violate the sovereignty of the Somali state."

Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry called on respecting Somalia's sovereignty and territorial integrity, warning against "Ethiopia's unilateral policies that violate international law and principles of good neighborliness."

Shoukry asserted Arab readiness to provide Somalia with the necessary support at the official and popular levels.

The Minister highlighted Egypt's previous warnings against the dangers of Ethiopia's unilateral policies that aim to impose a fait accompli without regard for the interests of African governments and peoples.

Shoukry indicated that signing an agreement on access to the Red Sea between Ethiopia and the Somaliland region validates the Egyptian perspective on the adverse impact of such actions and policies on regional stability.

He also expressed Egypt's full support for Somalia, calling on all Arab and international parties to fulfill their responsibility and express respect for Somalia's sovereignty and territorial integrity in line with the fundamental principles of the United Nations Charter.

The "landlocked" Ethiopia seeks to secure sea access that it has been deprived of for 30 years after Eritrea's independence in 1993.

The East African Intergovernmental Development Authority (IGAD) is scheduled to hold an extraordinary Thursday meeting in Uganda to discuss tensions between Ethiopia and Somalia.

It called on the US, the EU, the UK, the African Union, the Arab League, and Türkiye to respect Somalia's sovereignty.

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Arab World

Lebanon Limits Security Delegation’s Role to ‘Technical’ Talks with Israel

Lebanese Army troops deployed in central Beirut last week. (EPA)
Lebanese Army troops deployed in central Beirut last week. (EPA)
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Lebanon Limits Security Delegation’s Role to ‘Technical’ Talks with Israel

Lebanese Army troops deployed in central Beirut last week. (EPA)
Lebanese Army troops deployed in central Beirut last week. (EPA)

Hezbollah threatened on Tuesday to attack any armed force that coordinates with Israel if such a force were ever created. The warning came ahead of a planned security meeting between Lebanese and Israeli military representatives in Washington on May 29, even though Lebanese officials insist that no proposal to establish such a force exists.

According to official Lebanese sources speaking to Asharq Al-Awsat, the upcoming meeting will focus strictly on technical and logistical matters between representatives of the Lebanese and Israeli armies under US sponsorship and mediation.

Still, MP Hassan Fadlallah, a member of the party’s parliamentary bloc, issued a sharp warning against what he described as “American-Israeli talk” of creating a proxy armed force similar to the “Free Lebanon Army” established in 1978 and the “South Lebanon Army” formed in 1984, both of which collaborated with Israel.

Fadlallah said Hezbollah would confront any such force “as we confront the enemy.” At the same time, he praised the relationship between Hezbollah and the Lebanese Army, describing it as “excellent.”

Lebanese sources dismissed the MP’s remarks as reactions to “speculative media reports about the upcoming talks”.

Speaking to Asharq Al-Awsat, the sources said the idea of creating a pro-Israel Lebanese force “has never been discussed” in negotiations in Washington and has not been raised by any international envoy visiting Lebanon.

They added that the Lebanese Army categorically rejects any proposal to establish an independent force, an idea that had also circulated in local media reports.

Trilateral committee and expanded UN monitoring

The May 29 meeting is expected to focus on two proposals. The first involves establishing a trilateral committee made up of representatives from the Lebanese Army, the Israeli military, and the US Army. It would monitor ceasefire violations, oversee the Israeli withdrawal from Lebanese territory, and coordinate the deployment of the Lebanese Army in those areas.

The talks are also expected to address expanding the role of the United Nations Truce Supervision Organization (UNTSO), the UN’s first-ever peacekeeping mission, founded in May 1948 to monitor ceasefire agreements between Israel and neighboring states, including Lebanon. UNTSO observers are limited to monitoring and reporting duties rather than combat operations.

The sources said one proposal under discussion is to strengthen the observer mission by increasing the number of personnel and expanding its operations.

Unlike the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), which is expected to fully withdraw from Lebanon later this year, the UNTSO maintains only a small presence in Lebanon. Its observers, numbering only in the dozens, operate within the “Observer Group Lebanon” along the Blue Line to monitor the truce agreement between Lebanon and Israel.

Strictly military and technical files

The sources emphasized that the May 29 meeting will remain strictly technical and military in nature. Diplomatic negotiators, including Lebanon’s chief negotiator Ambassador Simon Karam and Lebanese Ambassador to Washington Nada Hamadeh Mouawad, are not expected to participate directly in the military discussions.

The agenda is likely to center on the ceasefire, Israeli withdrawal, and mechanisms for deploying the Lebanese Army in southern Lebanon.

The sources stressed that the meeting will not address Hezbollah’s weapons or any cooperation regarding its disarmament, saying those matters fall under the authority of the diplomatic negotiating team.

Hezbollah criticizes Lebanese leadership

Despite those assurances, Hezbollah continued to criticize the political and diplomatic approach pursued by Lebanese President Joseph Aoun to resolve the crisis. Relations between the party and Aoun remain strained.

Although Hezbollah appointed MP Fadlallah to coordinate with the presidency, Lebanese sources said he has neither met nor spoken with Aoun. The party has effectively suspended dialogue with the president, even though the presidential palace remains open, said the sources.

During a press conference in parliament, Fadlallah accused the government of breaking its commitment not to enter negotiations before a ceasefire was secured.

He questioned “how anyone can sit at a table with those continuing their crimes while Israel boasts of support from its allies in pursuing a destructive project.”

Fadlallah insisted that Lebanon’s only viable option is continued “resistance combined with indirect diplomacy backed by national unity and strength,” arguing that “no political alternative could compel Israel to halt the war and withdraw from Lebanese territory.”

In contrast, the Lebanese Kataeb Party called for broad national support for the negotiations in Washington, saying the process aims to consolidate the ceasefire, secure an Israeli withdrawal, end hostilities, free detainees, and allow displaced residents to return home.

The party accused Hezbollah of trying to keep Lebanon “a card in Iran’s hands” at the expense of South Lebanon and its residents.

Arab World

UN Considers Response to Israeli Move to Build a Military Compound on Site of Relief Agency

The front gate of the east Jerusalem compound of UNRWA is seen in east Jerusalem, May 10, 2024. (AP)
The front gate of the east Jerusalem compound of UNRWA is seen in east Jerusalem, May 10, 2024. (AP)
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UN Considers Response to Israeli Move to Build a Military Compound on Site of Relief Agency

The front gate of the east Jerusalem compound of UNRWA is seen in east Jerusalem, May 10, 2024. (AP)
The front gate of the east Jerusalem compound of UNRWA is seen in east Jerusalem, May 10, 2024. (AP)

The United Nations is considering how to respond to Israel's announcement that it will build a military complex on the former headquarters of the UN relief agency for Palestinians in east Jerusalem, an official said Tuesday.

Israel at the weekend announced the government's approval for a defense ministry complex at the United Nations Relief and Works Agency ’s compound in Sheikh Jarrah, including a museum and enlistment office.

“The matter is currently under consideration at the level of the legal council, the highest legal authority of the United Nations in New York,” UNRWA Deputy Commissioner General Natalie Boucly told The Associated Press during a visit to Syria.

“These are UN premises and, at a minimum, this is a breach of the 1946 UN Convention on privileges and immunities,” she said.

Israel bulldozed part of the UNRWA compound in January, capping off a decades-long campaign against the agency, which became acute following the Hamas-led attacks on Oct. 7, 2023.

Israel has accused the UN agency of harboring staff members affiliated with Hamas, accusing some of taking part in the attacks. UNRWA leaders have said they took swift action against the employees accused of taking part in the 2023 attacks, and have denied allegations that the agency tolerates or collaborates with Hamas.

Israel's Defense Minister Israel Katz said the plan to build a defense complex on the former UNRWA headquarters was “a decision of sovereignty, Zionism and security.”

“In a place where an organization that became part of the terror and incitement mechanism against Israel operated, institutions will be established that will strengthen Jerusalem, the (Israeli army), and the State of Israel,” Katz said in a statement on Sunday.

The decision came on Jerusalem Day, which marks Israel’s capture of east Jerusalem, including the Old City and its holy sites sacred to Jews, Christians and Muslims, in the 1967 Mideast war. Israel considers the entire city of Jerusalem its capital, while the Palestinians seek east Jerusalem as the capital of their future independent state.

The UNRWA compound was shut down in May 2025 after far-right protesters, including at least one member of parliament, overran its gate in view of the police.

UNRWA’s mandate is to provide aid and services to some 2.5 million Palestinian refugees in Gaza, the occupied West Bank and east Jerusalem, as well as 3 million refugees in Syria, Jordan and Lebanon. Its operations were curtailed last year when Israel’s Knesset passed legislation severing ties and banning it from functioning in what it defines as Israel — including east Jerusalem.

Boucly said the humanitarian situation in Gaza “remains absolutely dire.” While UNRWA international staff have been barred by Israel from entering Gaza, about 10,000 local staff continue to work in the enclave, including teachers, health workers and sanitation workers, she said.

Despite a tenuous ceasefire, “there are issues with insufficient aid coming in,” she said. “It is not coming in at scale and reconstruction is not starting fast enough for the people to see a real change on the ground.”

Boucly spoke to the AP from Syria's Yarmouk Palestinian refugee camp, where the situation is somewhat more hopeful as former residents who fled during the country's 14-year civil war have been gradually returning.

Taken over by a series of armed groups then bombarded by the military of then President Bashar al-Assad, the camp was all but abandoned after 2018. The buildings that were not destroyed by bombs were demolished by the government or stripped by thieves.

After Assad's ouster in 2024, former residents began to trickle back and repair their damaged homes. As of April, some 60,000 people had returned to the camp, of which 80% are Palestinian refugees, Boucly said.

Assistance to those returning to the camp has been limited, she acknowledged. UNRWA has received donor aid to rehabilitate schools and health centers, but has been unable to provide more than minor assistance to people needing to repair their damaged homes, she said.

Despite anxieties about shrinking funding, she said, “I think there is a situation of hope for Palestine refugees” in Syria.

Arab World

Sudan's RSF Denies Reports of Abu Lulu's Release

This handout picture released by the Sudanese Rapid Support Forces (RSF) on October 30, 2025, shows RSF members reportedly detaining a fighter known as Abu Lulu (L) in al-Fashir in war-torn Sudan's western Darfur region. (RSF / AFP)
This handout picture released by the Sudanese Rapid Support Forces (RSF) on October 30, 2025, shows RSF members reportedly detaining a fighter known as Abu Lulu (L) in al-Fashir in war-torn Sudan's western Darfur region. (RSF / AFP)
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Sudan's RSF Denies Reports of Abu Lulu's Release

This handout picture released by the Sudanese Rapid Support Forces (RSF) on October 30, 2025, shows RSF members reportedly detaining a fighter known as Abu Lulu (L) in al-Fashir in war-torn Sudan's western Darfur region. (RSF / AFP)
This handout picture released by the Sudanese Rapid Support Forces (RSF) on October 30, 2025, shows RSF members reportedly detaining a fighter known as Abu Lulu (L) in al-Fashir in war-torn Sudan's western Darfur region. (RSF / AFP)

Sudan’s paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) denied on Tuesday reports about the release of RSF Brigadier General al-Fateh Abdullah Idris, known as Abu Lulu, who was arrested late last year following global outrage over videos of him executing unarmed people in al-Fashir.

In a statement, the RSF “categorically” denied the reports, slamming them as “baseless” and being part of a “campaigns of incitement.”

Two sources – a Sudanese intelligence official and a commander with the RSF – said they personally saw Abu Lulu on the battlefield in Kordofan in March, said a Reuters report on Monday.

The RSF stressed that Abu Lulu and a number of individuals, accused of violations against civilians in al-Fashir, have been detained since their arrest in October.

“They remain in prison and have never left,” it added.

RSF officers had pleaded for Abu Lulu to be returned to the field to boost the morale of forces engulfed in heavy fighting there, a Chadian military officer told Reuters.

Reuters spoke with 13 sources who said they knew of Abu Lulu’s release. They include three RSF commanders, an RSF officer, a relative of Abu Lulu, a Chadian military officer close to RSF command and seven other sources with contacts in RSF leadership or access to intelligence on RSF field operations.

The RSF-led coalition government, in response to questions from Reuters, issued a statement on Monday denying the group had released Abu Lulu.

A special court will try him and others accused of violations during the al-Fashir offensive, according to the statement from Ahmed Tugud Lisan, spokesman for the RSF-led Tasis government.

The RSF imprisoned Abu Lulu in late October 2025, a few days after its bloody takeover of al-Fashir, a large city in North Darfur.

Multiple videos had surfaced of him executing unarmed people during the offensive. His actions earned him the nickname “the butcher of al-Fashir,” a moniker noted by the UN Security Council when sanctioning him on February 24 for human rights abuses.

The three-year civil war between the Sudanese army and the RSF is a brutal power struggle to control the country and its financial resources. It has created what aid groups say is the world's largest humanitarian ‌crisis.