Arab League Secretary-General Ahmed ­­Aboul-Gheit has reiterated the body s rejection of "illegal Turkish interventions" in the internal affairs of Arab countries, specifically in Iraq, Syria and Libya, warning that Ankara s actions are threatening the whole of Arab national security. Aboul-Gheit made the remarks during an interview with Aly Hassan, the editor-in-chief of MENA agency, on Wednesday. He said Turkish interventions are "targeting and impinging on Arab national security" and affirmed that the pan-Arab body rejects any regional interference that "threatens the security, safety and stability of the Arab countries." On 23 June, the Arab League held an extraordinary session via video conference to discuss developments in Libya, and issued a 14-article resolution in which the league emphasised “the need for restoring the Libyan state and the role of its institutions in serving the Libyan people, away from foreign interventions.” The resolution also referred to the “central role of Libya s neighbouring countries in ending the Libyan crisis,” and urged combating “foreign interventions—regardless of their source and nature—that facilitate the transfer of terrorist, foreign fighters into Libya” and rejected the violation of international decisions on an arms embargo. Aboul-Gheit stressed the importance of an Egyptian initiative for Libya, dubbed the Cairo Declaration, saying it lays out a comprehensive roadmap for settling the Libyan crisis and provides executive steps and mechanisms to deal with the military, security, political and economic aspects of the crisis in the conflict-torn country. The oil-rich country has been divided between rival administrations in the east and west since 2014, and the fissure is growing due to political stalemate and the failure of international diplomatic initiatives to reach a truce. The Government of National Accord (GNA), which is based in Tripoli, is backed by Turkish troops and Qatar in its war against the eastern-based LNA and its leader Haftar, who is supported by Egypt, the UAE and Russia. The Egyptian initiative was announced on 6 June by Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi, Haftar, and Libya s parliament speaker Aguila Saleh. It involves a ceasefire, an elected leadership council and a longer-term peace plan. The Egyptian initiative is based on the Libyan political consensus, the relevant UN Security Council resolutions and the outcomes of the Berlin conference, which resulted in a comprehensive political proposal that includes clear implementation steps in the political, economic and security fields and positive engagement from all Libyan parties with these initiatives. The initiative “encourages the Libyan parties to stop fighting and engage in the required political process," Aboul-Gheit told MENA, saying the Arab League “fully supports" the proposed plan, which has been welcomed by Arab, regional and Western powers. Earlier this week, Libya s eastern-based parliament, which backs Haftar, passed a motion authorising Egypt to intervene militarily if needed to safeguard the "national security" of both countries in light of what it termed a Turkish "occupation." Last month, El-Sisi said his country has a legitimate right to intervene in Libya and ordered the armed forces to be prepared to carry out any mission outside the country if necessary. He said any intervention by Egypt would mainly be aimed at protecting Egypt s western border, achieving a ceasefire, and restoring stability and peace in Libya, stressing that crossing the Sirte-Jufra frontline is a “red line” for Egypt. Forces allied with Haftar have recently pulled back east towards Sirte and Jufra airbase in central Libya after forces loyal to the rival government in the west extended control across most of northwest Libya and advanced further south. Regional and international interventions in Libya On the Arab League s stance on the regional and international interventions in Libya, Aboul-Gheit emphasised that the league position has always been “clear and consistent,” rejecting all forms of foreign interference in the Libyan crisis. “Libya is an important Arab country and an active member of the Arab League. The league cannot accept turning Libya into a scene for foreign military interventions or an outlet for achieving external agendas or regional ambitions," the secretary-general said. Aboul Gheit had told a League emergency ministerial meeting, held last month at the request of Egypt, that the situation in Libya has become "extremely dangerous.” He attributed this to the mounting “internationalization” of the Libyan conflict,” the increase in “foreign military interventions in the conflict,” the “recurrent violations of the arms embargo” and the “systematic recruitment of mercenaries and foreign fighters.” Calling for an end to the clashes, especially around the Libyan city of Sirte, Aboul-Gheit said a truce will only be achieved if there are clear rules and commitment to the exit of foreign fighters and mercenaries from Libya and the dismantling and demobilising of armed groups. "No one wants to repeat the Syrian scenario in Libya, and certainly there is an absolute Arab commitment to preserve the sovereignty, independence, and territorial integrity of the Libyan state and its national unity," Aboul-Gheit said.

New satellite imagery shows the reservoir behind Ethiopia s disputed hydroelectric dam beginning to fill, but an analyst says it s likely due to seasonal rains instead of government action. The images emerge as Ethiopia, Egypt and Sudan say the latest talks on the contentious project ended Monday with no agreement. Ethiopia has said it would begin filling the reservoir of the $4.6 billion Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam this month even without a deal, which would further escalate tensions. But the swelling reservoir, captured in imagery on July 9 by the European Space Agency s Sentinel-1 satellite, is likely a "natural backing-up of water behind the dam during this rainy season, International Crisis Group analyst William Davison told The Associated Press on Tuesday. "So far, to my understanding, there has been no official announcement from Ethiopia that all of the pieces of construction that are needed to be completed to close off all of the outlets and to begin impoundment of water into the reservoir have occurred, Davison said. But Ethiopia is on schedule for impoundment to begin in mid-July, he added, when the rainy season floods the Blue Nile. Ethiopian officials did not immediately comment Tuesday on the images. The latest setback in the three-country talks shrinks hopes that an agreement will be reached before Ethiopia begins filling the reservoir. Ethiopia says the colossal dam offers a critical opportunity to pull millions of its nearly 110 million citizens out of poverty and become a major power exporter. Downstream Egypt, which depends on the Nile to supply its farmers and booming population of 100 million with fresh water, asserts that the dam poses an existential threat. Years of talks with a variety of mediators, including the Trump administration, have failed to produce a solution. Last week s round, mediated by the African Union and observed by U.S. and European officials, proved no different. Experts fear that filling the dam without a deal could push the countries to the brink of military conflict. "Although there were progresses, no breakthrough deal is made, Seleshi Bekele, Ethiopia s minister of water, irrigation and energy, tweeted overnight. "All of the efforts exerted to reach a solution didn t come to any kind of result, Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry said Monday in an interview with Egypt s DMC TV channel. Shoukry warned that Egypt may be compelled to appeal again to the U.N. Security Council to intervene in the dispute, a prospect Ethiopia rejects, preferring regional bodies like the African Union to mediate. Meanwhile the countries agreed they would send their reports to the AU and reconvene in a week to determine next steps. Between Egypt and Ethiopia lies Sudan, which stands to benefit from the dam through access to cheap electricity and reduced flooding. But it has also raised fears over the dam s operation, which could endanger its own smaller dams, depending on the amount of water discharged daily downstream. In a press conference on Monday, Sudanese Irrigation Minister Yasser Abbas said the parties were "keen to find a solution but technical and legal disagreements persist over its filling and operation. Most important, he said, are the questions about how much water Ethiopia will release downstream if a multi-year drought occurs and how the countries will resolve any future disputes. Hisham Kahin, a member of Sudan s legal committee in the dam negotiations, said 70% to 80% of negotiations turned on the question of whether an agreement would be legally binding.

Egypt s President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi has ratified the appointment of new ambassadors to several foreign capitals, including Washington, local media reported on Monday. The president ratified the appointment of ambassadors Motaz Zahran to Washington, Alaa Youssef to Paris, and Mohamed Idris as Egypt s Permanent Representative to the United Nations in New York. Zahran was Egypt s ambassador to Canada, while Youssef served as a presidential spokesman (2014-2017) before heading to Geneva as Egypt s permanent representative to the UN s European headquarters. Idris was Egypt s ambassador to Ethiopia before being named as the foreign minister s assistant for African affairs. He has served as Egypt s permanent representative to the United Nations in New York since 2018 and will remain in his post. Ambassador Ehab Gamal El-Din was also appointed as Egypt s Permanent Representative to the UN s Geneva headquarters, and Ambassador Yasser Hashem was appointed as consul to Melbourne, Australia. The reshuffle included the appointment of new ambassadors to Hong Kong, Uruguay, Poland, Peru, Thailand, Iraq, Singapore, Nepal, Panama, Cuba, Uganda, Nigeria, Guatemala, Switzerland, Mauritius, Finland, Cyprus, Ukraine, Austria, Netherlands, Tunisia, Zambia, Gabon and Burkina Faso.

Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi opened on Sunday the third stage of Al-Asmarat housing project in Moqattam, Cairo, which is being constructed as part of continued government efforts to combat informal settlements. Al-Asmarat 3 would become home to thousands of residential units with full utilities and facilities and a service complex that would serve around 100,000 people living in all three stages of the housing project. The third stage includes 7440 units and several facilities, including playgrounds, health units, a parking space accommodating 9,000 cars as well as plans to construct a church and mosque.

Egypt will not accept any incomprehensive deal over the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) that may disregard Egyptian concerns or fail to resolve major differences, Egypt s irrigation ministry said in a statement late on Wednesday. Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia have been engaged in online talks sponsored by the African Union for nearly a week with the aim of reaching an accord over the mega-dam on the Blue Nile. Ethiopia announced it will begin filling the GERD reservoir this month. The Egyptian delegation told observers at the talks that Cairo “will not accept any incomplete phrasing [of a deal] that would not take into account Egyptian concerns or postpone discussion of contentious issues between the three countries,” the ministry said, adding that Egypt has presented multiple alternatives that had been rejected by Ethiopia. The ministry added that Ethiopia s continued adherence to its “rigid” stances on both the technical and legal aspects of the differences over the hydropower project shall “reduce the chances of reaching an agreement.” Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia resumed talks last week in response to a call by South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, the current AU chairperson. Observers representing the EU, the US, the AU and South Africa are attending the talks. The delegation of each country on Wednesday held bilateral meetings with the observers to discuss points of contention. The Egyptian negotiators voiced their concerns about Ethiopia s failure to address rules regulating the filling and operation of the GERD during drought, prolonged drought, and dry years. The fundamental points of differences also include the rules of the re-filling following prolonged drought, and the annual operation of the giant dam, which is being built near the Sudanese border. Egypt is also concerned about future projects on the Blue Nile, a main tributary of the Nile, and demands binding dispute settlement mechanisms, things that Addis Ababa has refused to include in a deal. Egypt says these points represent the “backbone of the technical and legal parts of the deal” for Cairo. Ethiopia is “holding on to the unilateral change of the operating rules [of the dam] in a unilateral manner and with an individual will, and these points remain a source of contention until now,” the ministry said. A government source speaking to Al-Ahram Weekly earlier this week said “the possibility of a deal emerging is unlikely”, while a negotiator in the Egyptian team said “no deal is better than a bad deal — we cannot sign to a deal that would compromise a strategic interest like water security.” The talks are scheduled to resume on Thursday before a final report on the outcomes is submitted to the African Union. Egypt s irrigation ministry spokesman Mohamed El-Sebai earlier said the talks may continue into Friday or Saturday.

Egypt s Ministry of Health said in a statement on Wednesday that the recovery rate for coronavirus patients in isolation hospitals has risen to 28.1 percent, marking the highest level since the epidemic hit the country on 14 February. The ministry said that the total number of coronavirus recoveries nationwide has reached 21,718 so far. The health ministry s statement added that the country is currently witnessing a stable death rate of 4.5 percent for coronavirus patients. The first coronavirus fatality announced in Egypt was on 8 March. While it took the respiratory virus almost a month to reach 94 fatalities on 7 April, it took only 24 hours for the virus to claim 97 lives, the highest single-day death toll to date, on 15 May. The health minister said in a statement on 16 June that Egypt is among the countries with the lowest coronavirus death rates, adding that patients with chronic diseases have had the highest mortality rate. The minister added that 60 percent of the coronavirus fatalities in Egypt are in patients who are over 60 years old. Driven by economic concerns, Egypt began on 27 June to ease lockdown measures more than three months after they were imposed, lifting a nighttime curfew and allowing more businesses to reopen, including restaurants, coffee shops and cinemas.

Egypt, France, Germany and Jordan on Tuesday warned Israel against annexing parts of the Palestinian territories, saying that doing so could have consequences for bilateral relations. In a statement distributed by the German Foreign Ministry, the countries, including Israel s two leading partners in the Middle East, said their foreign ministers had discussed how to restart talks between Israel and the Palestinian Authority. They, along with most other European countries, oppose Israeli plans that envisage annexing parts of the occupied West Bank as part of a peace deal that is promoted by the U.S. administration of President Donald Trump. The Palestinian Authority, which wants the West Bank for a future Palestinian state, opposes the move. The United States has yet to give its approval to the annexation plans. "We concur that any annexation of Palestinian territories occupied in 1967 would be a violation of international law and imperil the foundations of the peace process," the European and Middle Eastern foreign ministers said after their video conference. "We would not recognize any changes to the 1967 borders that are not agreed by both parties in the conflict," they added. "It could also have consequences for the relationship with Israel." Israel had no immediate response. But in a separate statement, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu s office said he had told British counterpart Boris Johnson on Monday that he was committed to Trump s "realistic" peace plan. "Israel is prepared to conduct negotiations on the basis of President Trump’s peace plan, which is both creative and realistic, and will not return to the failed formulas of the past," the statement said.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi will hold bilateral talks with his Eritrean counterpart Isaias Afwerki in Cairo on Monday, Egyptian presidency spokesman Bassam Rady said. Rady said El-Sisi and Afwerki will exchange viewpoints on developments in the Horn of Africa and the Red Sea. They will also mull bilateral cooperation as part of special relationships between Egypt and Eritrea, Rady added. The Eritrean President arrived in the Egyptian capital late on Sunday for a three-day visit.

The newly-appointed heads of Egypt s press and media organisations were sworn in before parliament on Sunday. The list of heads, who were named by President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi on 22 June, include Karam Gabr, head of the Supreme Council for Media Regulation; Abdel-Sadeq El-Shorbagi, head of the Higher Press Organisation; and Hussein Zein, head of the Higher Media Organisation. Parliament speaker Ali Abdel-Aal said the procedure comes in line with the media and press laws, which stipulate that these heads take the constitutional oath before parliament ahead of exercising their duties. Abdel-Aal said the appointment of the new heads come at a very difficult time for Egypt’s national media and press organisations. "We have the coronavirus crisis which hit the national media and press organisations very hard, not to mention that Egypt faces very severe hostile media attacks and this requires the national media to stand firm in the face of these attacks,” said Abdel-Aal, telling the new media heads that “I think this is not an easy job but I am sure that you will do this job very sincerely and honestly.” Abdel-Aal described Gabr as one of the journalists who declared war against “the terrorist group,” a reference to the Muslim Brotherhood, very early on. “This came through the weekly magazine of Rose El-Youssef which led the battle against the terrorist organisation,” he said, expressing hope that “the Egyptian national television and press organisations will be back playing a pioneering role in shaping in Arab public opinion.” “We need Egypt’s soft power to be used again to stand up to the media war we face,” said Abdel-Aal, adding that “I also hope that Egyptian radio stations broadcasting in African languages will come back.” Gabr commented: “Egypt needs the unity of all national forces because we are all partners in correcting misguided conceptions and enlightening the public opinion.” “I assure you that we will do our best to stand up to all negative practices and make sure that there is no media chaos in Egypt,” said Gabr, adding that “the coming period is very critical because Egypt will see the election of a new parliament and a new Senate.” Information Minister Osama Heikal said there will be greater cooperation between the state and press and media organisations in the coming period. “The problems facing the Egyptian media are at the top of the state’s priorities and we hope that we all will be able to solve them,” said Heikal. The minister also said that he and his family have fully recovered from the coronavirus. He had been in self-isolation after contracting the disease.

Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi ratified Thursday four laws governing legislative elections, including a law on the formation of the Senate, the country’s new Upper house of parliament. The ratified laws include House of Representatives Law 46/2014, and two other laws on the Exercise of Political Rights (Law 45/2014) and the Performance of the National Election Committee (Law 198/2017). According to the Senate law, two thirds of the chamber will be elected in a direct secret ballot through a closed-list system and individual system, while the remaining third will be appointed by the president. The senate’s term lasts for five years. The Senate law also stipulates that women should have no less than 10 percent of Senate seats. The amendments to the House of Representative Law states that the number of the House s elected MPs shall stand at 568, instead of 540, in line with Article 102 of Egypt s 2019-amended constitution. According to Article 3 of the 2019 amendments to the House law, 50 percent of this number (284 MPs) will be elected via the individual system, and 50 percent (284 MPs) will be elected through the closed list system. The article also stipulates that 25 percent of the total number of the House s seats shall be reserved for women. The president shall be authorised to appoint no more than five percent of the total number of MPs. Meanwhile, Article 4 states that the individual candidacy system shall be implemented in a number of electoral districts, while the closed list system will be in application in four districts, two of which will elect 84 MPs (42 each) and two will elect 200 MPs (100 each). The House saw disagreements among representatives of political parties over the amendments to the election system that will regulate upcoming parliamentary elections before the changes were passed by a majority of MPs. The amendments to the laws on the Exercise of Political Rights and the Performance of the National Election Committee (NEC) state that the NEC shall decide on appeals filed on the results of the election within 24 hours, and in doing so it shall observe the requirements of integrity, neutrality and fairness of the ballot process. The sitting House of Representatives was elected in late 2015 for a five-year term. The final drafts of the laws governing legislative elections were drafted and submitted to the House for a vote in June by the parliamentary majority ‘Support Egypt’ coalition.

The official gazette on Tuesday published a decision by the prime minister for the establishment of a joint stock company for metro lines and rail transport management, operation and maintenance. Under the decision, the Ministry of Finance, the New Urban Communities Authority, the National Investment Bank and the National Authority for Tunnels, will establish the company together.

Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi has said in a statement on Tuesday that he vows to continue the battle for comstruction and to face domestic and external challenges “with the same determination” displayed during the 30 June Revolution. In a post on Facebook commemorating the seventh anniversary of the revolution, El-Sisi stressed that “Egypt is a nation that has made history and continues to make history on various fronts,” and said the country serves as an “inspiration for humanity.” The president also said that the revolution would “live in the memories of all generations due to what it instilled in terms of pride, dignity and patriotism, and for safeguarding the country’s identity from abduction.” “I renew the vow to continue our honorable battle to achieve development and face challenges both at home and abroad,” he said. On 30 June 2013, millions of Egyptians took to the streets to protest the tumultous rule of Islamist President Mohamed Morsi, who had come to power in June 2012. Amid the mass protests against his rule, Morsi was removed from office on 3 July by a wide coalition of political forces, which set a roadmap for amending the country s constitution and holding new elections. Thursday, 2 July, will be a fully paid day off for governmental and private sector workers on the occasion of the seventh anniversary of the 30 June revolution.

Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi will inaugurate on Monday a number of national projects, including the new Sphinx International Airport as well as Heliopolis landmark Baron Empain Palace following the completion of its first-ever restoration. The ceremony, which El-Sisi is attending at Al-Galaa Theatre in Heliopolis, will also see the inauguration of the New Administrative Capital Airport and a number of projects in eastern Cairo. Speaking at the event, Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly presented plans for the development of Khedivial Cairo, which began with the renovation of Cairo’s Tahrir Square and other areas, including the Maspero Triangle and the Magra El-Oyoun aqueduct, which is set to serve as a tourist attraction. Madbouly said that the size of development projects carried out by Egypt in the past six years totaled EGP 4.5 trillion ($278 billion). The PM said that Egypt continues to achieve the best growth rates in the Middle East and North Africa despite the repercussions of the coronavirus pandemic on global growth rates. He said the global economy is seeing a recession due to the pandemic, with a negative growth rate amid a plunge in tourism traffic globally. Madbouly said that Egypt’s growth rate had reached 5.9 percent before the crisis, but the forecasted growth rate now stands at 4 percent by the end of fiscal year 2019/2020, which is still the highest in the region. The PM said that the size of government investments in fiscal year 2020/2021, which begins on 1 July, is estimated at EGP 400 billion, adding that the state also seeks the restoration of around 1.2 million feddans in the upcoming period to help achieve self-sufficiency in agricultural resources. The state has allocated EGP 15 billion in the telecommunications sector in the upcoming financial year to upgrade the sector’s infrastructure and scale up the services provided to citizens, Madbouly said. By August, more e-services will be provided to citizens through the government’s digital portal, he said, adding that the government aims to provide 155 online services by the end of 2020. Revival of the Baron Empain Palace President El-Sisi attended the inauguration of the long-dormant Baron Empain Palace in Heliopolis following a restoration process that took over two years. The palace is designated as a tourist destination as well as a historical exhibition on the history of Heliopolis. The restoration work on the mansion, originally built in 1911, was carried out in collaboration with the Armed Forces Engineering Authority and the Arab Contractors Company on a budget of more than EGP 100 million. Tourism and Antiquities Minister Khaled El-Anany said the inauguration of the palace is important for the country’s tourism sector, adding that the opening reaffirms that “Egypt does not forget its history.” Egypt will gradually resume regular international flights at all its airports starting 1 July. Foreign tourists will only be allowed into three coastal governorates as part of tour groups, which aims to make up for the losses the vital sector has suffered amid the pandemic. Egypt hopes that the resumption of regular flights starting next month will boost its ailing tourism sector, an essential source of foreign currency. Minister El-Anany said that the country is currently bracing for the gradual resumption of tourism on Wednesday to three governorates under strict preventive measures. El-Anany said 400 hotels nationwide have received the necessary health safety certificates to reopen and receive tourists at a reduced occupancy, praising support provided by the finance ministry and the Central Bank of Egypt to help aid a sector hit heavily by the pandemic. New airports inaugurated The Egyptian president also attended the inauguration of two new airports: Sphinx International Airport (SPX) and the New Administrative Capital Airport, both of which aim to alleviate pressure on Cairo International Airport, which is in the eastern side of the capital. The SPX, which is part of the government s plan to stimulate tourism to the country, had opened its doors in 2019 as part of a trial operation. The airport aims to serve the Greater Cairo districts of 6 October and Sheikh Zayed, as well as the governorates of Fayoum and Beni Suef. It also aims to serve tourists coming to visit the pyramids and the anticipated Grand Egyptian Museum (GEM), which is around 90 percent complete. The SPX, built with a budget of EGP 300 million, has been dubbed the “300 passenger airport” in reference to its accommodation capacity per hour. The New Administrative Capital Airport was also inaugurated under a plan to connect the areas of East Cairo, Shorouk and Badr cities, as well as the Suez Canal cities. The airport will have the capacity to accommodate 300 passengers per hour, with 45 buildings around the place and a main terminal of over 5,000 square meters of space, which will help ease the load on the capital’s main airport.

Two Egyptian members of parliament were diagnosed with coronavirus on Saturday and Sunday, including Abdel-Rehim Ali, an independent MP representing Dokki, Giza, who was diagnosed with COVID-19 while on a trip to Paris. Ali, a researcher on political Islam, left Cairo for Paris last week to attend a conference on the Libyan crisis. A statement issued by Abdel-Rehim s office on Sunday morning said he had a high fever on Saturday night and was taken to a private hospital in Paris, where he tested positive for the virus on Sunday morning. "He is currently receiving treatment in the intensive care unit," the statement said. Hiatham El-Hariri, a leftist MP representing Karmouz, Alexandria, has also tested positive for the coronavirus. In a Facebook statement on Friday evening, El-Hariri said "on Wednesday morning, I had mild fever so I did some tests… On Thursday morning, I [suffered from] fatigue and headed to a fever hospital where I tested positive for COVID-19." A total of 11 Egyptian MPs have so far been diagnosed with coronavirus. Parliament spokesperson Salah Hasaballah told Al-Ahram Online that six of the infected MPs have been admitted to isolation hospitals. "They have almost recovered and five of them have left the hospital," said Hassaballah, adding that "we have other three MPs who preferred home isolation and their general conditions are now stable." Hassaballah said "the infection of 11 MPs will not stop parliament from holding its plenary sessions scheduled for next week, on Sunday 5 July." "Despite the infections, we were able to discuss and pass the 2020/21 budget and development plan, as well as five election laws," said Hassaballah, adding that "next week, parliament will discuss new draft laws on taxes, intellectual property rights and other economic issues." Egypt has been witnessing a steady increase in coronavirus cases, with the total infections until Saturday recording 63,923 and deaths reaching 2,708. Starting this week, Egypt has lifted a number of restrictions in place since March, including lifting a nighttime curfew and reopening restaurants, coffee shops, and some cultural and social venues, albeit under new hygiene and safety restrictions.

Sudan said in a letter to the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) on Wednesday that it is “deeply concerned” about Ethiopia’s decision to start filling its controversial dam on the Blue Nile without prior agreement with downstream countries Egypt and Sudan. Egypt s southern neighbour urged the international body to "discourage" all parties from any “unilateral action." In its three-page letter, which was seen by Ahram Online, Khartoum said the unilateral filling of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) will put the operation of the Sudanese Roseires dam, whose reservoir is located 15 km away from the Ethiopian dam, and the lives of millions of people living downstream at "a very high risk." "Sudan is deeply concerned about Ethiopia s decision to start filling the GERD reservoir in the absence of an agreement," said the letter by Sudan’s Foreign Minister Asmaa Mohamed Abdallah. Khartoum called upon Cairo and Addis Ababa to adopt a draft agreement it proposed during talks earlier this month as a basis for finalising a deal. The agreement would regulate the filling and long-term operation of the GERD and adopt drought mitigation and safety measures. Sudan s letter to the UNSC came after Egypt sent a letter to the Security Council on 19 June requesting its intervention to resolve the dam dispute with Ethiopia. Egypt s letter to the Security Council came after talks stalled last week and Addis Ababa declared it will go ahead with the filling of the dam in July, even without a deal. In its letter to the UNSC, Khartoum said that despite the potential positive impacts of the Ethiopian dam on Sudan, including increased hydropower generation and better management of the country’s irrigation system, the project can carry “substantial risks” without an agreement regulating its operation and filling. Those negative impacts include threatening the operational safety of Sudanese dams and the flood-plain agricultural system of Khartoum as well as possible socioeconomic and environmental harms, it said. Khartoum believes "there has to be an agreement in place with Ethiopia on how it intends to fill and operate GERD, otherwise the GERD stands to cause substantial risks to Sudan." Sudan said the GERD "will completely change the flow regime of the Blue Nile" by flattening its hydrograph and with its gigantic size it "can poses substantial negative impacts on Sudan if not properly designed, constructed, filled and operated." Such harmful impacts, Sudan says, would "threaten the lives and safety of millions of Sudanese citizens." Khartoum told the UNSC that the draft agreement it submitted on 14 June to Egypt and Ethiopia has successfully brought divergent views closer. The agreement was based on the consensus reached during Washington talks - that stalled in mid-February - as well as the output of previous discussions throughout the past years. Despite what Sudan sees as "significant" technical progress, it emphasised that divergence on some "fundamental legal issues" still persisted. Egypt, however, stated that disagreements were not merely related to the legal terms but also included technical issues, including regulating the operation of the dam during drought and extended drought. Among the legal disputed terms that Sudan mentioned in its letter is the "binding nature of the agreement", Ethiopia’s insistence to include water-sharing issues in the agreement, and a lack of a binding dispute resolution mechanism. Khartoum s proposed agreement of 14 June "ensured that the agreement to be signed will be legally binding and cannot be amended or terminated without the agreement of all three parties." However, Sudan s letter said Ethiopia proposed a document of "guidelines" that can be revised and in some cases terminated. Ethiopia s insistence not to commit to a legally-binding agreement was previously highlighted by the Egyptian irrigation ministry which said Ethiopia insisted on drafting “guiding rules that [it] can unilaterally amend." Egypt said the recent talks between the water ministers of the three countries “have made little progress" due to Ethiopia’s "intransigent positions" on both the technical and legal aspects of the deal. Khartoum proposed at the end of last week s negotiations the referral of pending legal issues to the prime ministers of the three countries to allow the negotiations to resume. Sudan urged the UNSC to call upon the three countries to “demonstrate their political will and commitment by resolving the remaining issues and to conclude an agreement.” "The draft is comprehensive, fair, and balanced and it paves the way for concluding a comprehensive and final deal," Sudan said describing its draft agreement, adding that with the political will and commitment from the parties "we can conclude this historic agreement."

Libyan parliament speaker said on Wednesday that the Libyan people will request the military intervention of Egypt whenever needed. Speaking to Egypt s state-owned MENA news agency, Akeela Saleh said the Egyptian intervention "would be legitimate under the Libyan people s mandate." "We will request the intervention of the Egyptian armed forces to support the Libyan army in case of the penetration of Sirte" by armed militias, Saleh stressed.

The foreign ministers of a number of Arab countries said in a videoconference on Tuesday that the water security of Egypt and Sudan is “inseparable from Arab national security.” During the meeting, held to discuss the situation with the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), the ministers expressed their rejection of any act or measure that would infringe on the rights of Nile Basin countries. The ministers praised Sudan’s call for holding new rounds of negotiations from 25 May till 17 June in order to reach an agreement about the rules of filling and operating the GERD. They also welcomed UN chief Antonio Guterres’ call for Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia to reach an agreement through negotiations. The ministers also expressed their deep concern about the unfruitful talks between the three states, stressing the need for resuming negotiations in order to reach a deal that takes into consideration the interests of all parties. The Arab top diplomats called on all parties not to take unilateral actions, including the filling of the GERD by Ethiopia, without first reaching a deal with the two other countries about the general rules. Otherwise, they argued, this would serve as a direct violation of the Declaration of Principles signed by the three states in Khartoum in March 2015. They also emphasised the importance of the three countries abiding by international law, as well as resuming technical studies on the socio-economic and environmental impact of the GERD on Egypt and Sudan. Sudan s state minister for foreign affairs said on Tuesday that Egypt and his country share a consensus about the Arab resolution on the GERD. Omar Ismail said that both countries have cooperated on this issue, stressing that Sudan is a "key party" in the GERD talks. Following days of renewed talks between the water ministers of the three countries, which were brokered by Sudan, the negotiations reached a deadlock due to Ethiopia’s "intransigent positions" on both the technical and legal aspects of the deal. Ethiopia refused to sign a binding agreement between the three countries, insisting on drafting “guiding rules that [it] can unilaterally amend,” Egypt said. Cairo and Addis Ababa recently sent letters to the United Nations Security Council in the latest escalation in the GERD crisis.

Cypriot Foreign Minister Nikos Christodoulides and his Egyptian counterpart Sameh Shoukry discussed the latest developments in the East Mediterranean region in a telephone call on Sunday June 21,2020. The top diplomats also talked about the situation in Libya and Turkish moves that fomented tension in the Arab country and destabilized the whole region, the Cypriot Foreign Ministry said in a statement. They agreed on the need of an immediate ceasefire and a return to the political process based on the outcome of the Berlin Conference and relevant UN Security Council resolutions, including No. 2510. Christodoulides reiterated Nicosia’s full support for Cairo’s initiative that takes into consideration those resolutions.

A military solution in Libya would be Egypt’s last resort to safeguard its security, Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry said on Sunday, one day after Egypt asserted that it has a legitimate right to intervene in the neighboring country to secure its borders amid growing tensions in the region. In an interview with Saudi owned Al-Arabiya TV, Shoukry said that Egypt has been coordinating with international and regional players in Libya, stressing that a military move would be Cairo’s “last option to preserve its security.” “We refuse Turkey s attempt to expand in Libya,” he said, adding that Ankara’s expansion in Syria, Iraq and Libya is in violation of international legitimacy. Shoukry’s interview came one day after Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi said that Cairo has a legitimate right to intervene in the war-torn neighboring country to restore security and stability after receiving "direct threats" from "terrorist militias", stressing that Egypt has long been reluctant to take the move. El-Sisi said that any intervention in Libya by Egyptian forces “would be led by the Libyan tribes,” stressing that the Libyan frontline of Sirte and Al-Jufra is “a red line” for Egyptian national security. Earlier this month, President El-Sisi, commander of the Libyan National Army (LNA) Khalifa Haftar, and the speaker of the Libyan parliament Aguila Saleh announced a peace initiative, dubbed the Cairo Declaration, to end the civil war in Libya through a ceasefire and an elected leadership council. The Cairo plan comes after the collapse of an offensive launched by Haftar in April 2019 to capture the Libyan capital, further extending the rival Government of National Accord’s (GNA) control over most of northwest Libya. Egypt, the UAE and Russia are backing Haftar in the east, while Turkey supports the Tripoli-based GNA. Shoukry said that Egypt is currently discussing the Libya situation with Tunisia and Algeria, and that the three countries have a “shared view” on the matter. The minister added that “it is time for serious action to achieve stability” in the country. On the disputed dam Ethiopia is building on the Blue Nile, Shoukry said that Egypt wishes to see a "convergence of views" between Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan. The minister said that Cairo has presented a draft agreement on the mega dam without providing more details, as the growing tensions with Ethiopia have pushed Egypt to ask the UN Security Council to intervene to resolve the dispute. “We have resorted to the UNSC after the Ethiopian side refused to [reach] an understanding. They have been persistent in rejecting mediations,” he said, describing the UNSC move as a “sovereign decision.” Shoukry’s comments come after El-Sisi stressed on Saturday that Egypt is committed to pursuing a diplomatic path to resolve the dispute over the hydropower dam being built near the Ethiopian border with Sudan. Saturday’s statements were the first by the Egyptian president since Egypt officially lodged a complaint with the UN Security Council after Ethiopia said it would start filling the dam’s reservoir next month regardless of whether a deal is reached.

Renewed negotiations between Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia over the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) remained deadlocked after Addis Ababa refused to enter into a legally-binding agreement over the controversial project, Egypt’s irrigation ministry said on Wednesday. The days-long talks between the water ministers of the three countries that were brokered by Sudan “have made little progress" due to Ethiopia’s "intransigent positions" on both the technical and legal aspects of a deal, the ministry said in a statement. Ethiopia refused that the three countries conclude a binding agreement in accordance with international law, and stood firm on merely reaching “guiding rules that [it] can unilaterally amend,” the ministry said. Addis Ababa has also refused to include in the agreement a legally-binding mechanism to settle disputes between the three nations, or effective measures to cope with drought, the Egyptian ministry added. Sudanese Irrigation Minister Yasser Abbas suggested on Wednesday referring the contentious issues to the prime ministers of the three countries to reach a political consensus that would allow talks to resume as soon as possible. But Egypt said Ethiopia had opposed to this proposition which the Egyptian statement described as "a last-ditch attempt" to resolve the stalemate. However, a statement by the Ethiopian irrigation ministry later on the day said the meeting concluded with an agreement to continue the negotiation after "Sudanese delegation" gets a requested consultation with its prime minister done. The three countries resumed talks on 9 June via video conference after more than three months of deadlock. Officials from the US, EU and South Africa, the current chairman of the African Union, attended as observers. Abbas, meanwhile, told reporters after the talks ended that the three countries agreed on “90% or 95%” of the technical issues but the differences over the legal aspects remained unsolved. Nevertheless, his ministry said in a statement later that the legal disagreements reflect “major conceptual differences” between the three nations. The Sudanese minister said his country and Egypt refused Ethiopia’s attempts to include points on the sharing of Nile water in the deal. “The deal should be on the filling and operation of the dam, not the sharing of water quotas between the three countries.” “A deal should be signed before the start of the filling,” Abbas stressed. Ethiopia has repeatedly said it will start filling the reservoir of the mega dam next month regardless of whether an agreement is reached or not. Earlier this month Sudan asked the UN Security Council to encourage all parties to refrain from taking unilateral actions, and Egypt had also urged the bloc to call on Ethiopia to not act unilaterally by filling the dam. In response, Addis Ababa told the UN body that it “does not have a legal obligation to seek the approval of Egypt to fill the dam.” After US-sponsored meetings in Washington stumbled in February, US Secretary of the Treasury Steven Mnuchin said the “final testing and filling [of the dam] should not take place without an agreement.” The US demand was reiterated on Wednesday when the US National Security Council (NSC) said that “it is time” to reach a deal over the GERD before Ethiopia starts filling the dam’s reservoir. In a post on its official Twitter account, the NSC said "257 million people in East Africa are relying on Ethiopia to show strong leadership, which means striking a fair deal." The US, represented by the Treasury Department, and the World Bank stepped in last year to host tripartite negotiations, which began in November and lasted till February after years-long negotiations between the three countries hit a dead end. Ethiopia, however, skipped the last round of Washington talks. Earlier this week, Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry said his country may resort to the United Nations Security Council to prevent Ethiopia from taking any “unilateral” action on the hydropower project if Addis Ababa remains "intransigent." Egypt stressed that it has been seeking a “fair and balanced” agreement for the three nations through nearly a decade of talks but was met by “stringent” approach from Ethiopia. Egypt, which is almost entirely dependent on the Nile River Nile for its freshwater, fears the dam will diminish its water supply, which is already below scarcity level. Some 85 percent of the Nile water that reach Egypt flow from Ethiopia highlands. Ethiopia hopes the massive $4.8 billion megaproject on the Blue Nile will, which would generate 6,000 megawatt when complete, will allow it to become Africa’s largest power exporter.