Cairo says unilateral decisions on the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam threaten lives, livelihoods, and regional stability
On Friday, CAIRO-Egypt accused Ethiopia of reckless and irresponsible management of the Nile’s floodwaters through unilateral operations of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), warning that the resulting floods threaten lives, livelihoods, and the delicate social and political balance of the region.
In a strongly worded statement, Egypt’s Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation said the recent surge in Nile waters, which inundated parts of Sudan and low-lying Egyptian farmland, was directly linked to “Ethiopia’s illegal and uncoordinated dam operations in violation of international law.”
The ministry argued that “these practices lack the most basic principles of responsibility and transparency and represent a direct threat to the lives and security of the peoples of the downstream states.”
Beyond the technical disputes over water flow and flood management, the crisis is stirring deeper tensions with human and cultural dimensions across the Nile Basin.
In the Sudanese borderlands, homes, schools, and farms have been washed away in recent weeks. Families are being forced to flee villages that have stood for generations along the river’s fertile banks. A river long seen as a sustenance, symbol of life and identity.
In Egypt, local authorities have begun implementing emergency precautions in several northern governorates, including Beheira and Monufia, where rising Nile levels have already submerged farmland and low-lying homes. “Citizens and farmers residing on riverbank lands… must evacuate those areas immediately,” read an official notice from the Monufia governorate.
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