Arab Alliance Addresses African Aquatic Argument, Asks for Arbitrator’s Action

The Arab League’s forum of foreign ministers convened in Qatar on Tuesday to discuss a string of pressing issues concerning the Arab world, chief among them the crisis over the Nile River between Sudan, Egypt and Ethiopia; tensions in Jerusalem and Gaza between Israel and Palestinians; events in Lebanon, Syria and Libya; and the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. The League’s Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul Gheit announced that the organization would back calls for the UN Security Council to intervene in the East African dispute, which has been dragging out for years. Ethiopia’s massive dam, expected to be operational in the coming months, threatens to totally deplete Egypt’s near lone source of freshwater. Previous negotiations between the countries have all stalled, with threats of force by Cairo increasing. The forum also expressed concern over the latest events in Jerusalem, where friction between Jews and Arabs threatened to flare during a controversial rally in the Old City.