Egyptian politicians caught in on-air Ethiopia dam gaffe – BBC
Egyptian politicians are embarrassed after being caught suggesting hostile acts against Ethiopia to stop it from building a dam across the Blue Nile. They were inadvertently heard on live TV proposing military action at a meeting
Egyptian politicians are embarrassed after being caught suggesting hostile acts against Ethiopia to stop it from building a dam across the Blue Nile.
They were inadvertently heard on live TV proposing military action at a meeting called by President Mohammed Morsi.
Ethiopia last week started diverting the flow of the river in preparation for the $4.2bn hydroelectric dam.
The Blue Nile is one of two major tributaries of the Nile.
On completion, the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam would be Africa’s largest.
It is expected to produce 6,000 megawatts, and its reservoir is scheduled to start filling next year.
Apology
As the participants did not know that the meeting was being aired live by state TV, they spoke their minds unreservedly.
Their suggestions centred around military action as a decisive response to what one of them called a “declaration of war”.
One of the politicians suggested sending special forces to destroy the dam; another thought of jet fighters to scare the Ethiopians; and a third called for Egypt to support rebel groups fighting the government in Addis Ababa.
“This could yield results in the diplomatic arena,” liberal politician and former presidential candidate Ayman Nour told the gathering.
Muhammad Anwar al-Sadat, the leader of the secular Reform and Development party, said the presidency should have warned the participants in advance that the meeting would be broadcast live.
“I am afraid most of the politicians who attended the meeting were not well informed about such a sensitive topic,” he told the BBC.
“But the statements made during the meeting do not represent the Egyptian official stance. It was just a chat between politicians who were angered by the Ethiopian plans.”
A presidential adviser apologised for failing to warn politicians.
“I am sorry for any unintentional embarrassment,” Bakinam al-Sharqawi said in a statement.
Egypt is the most populous country in the Middle East and highly dependent on the water of the world’s longest river.
Ethiopia’s decision to construct the dam challenges a colonial-era agreement that had given Egypt and Sudan rights to the Nile water, with Egypt taking 55.5 billion cubic metres and Sudan 18.5 billion cubic metres.
That agreement, first signed in 1929, took no account of the eight other nations along the 6,700km (4,160-mile) river and its basin.
Those countries have been agitating for a decade for a more equitable accord.
Kabbire June 7, 2013
This only shows the savage Arabs disrespect to Africans. This is the reason the racist Arab regimes and their semi literate intellectuals and media kept their stinking mouths shut while half a million Darfurs perished nor did these Arab xenophobes say a word when the sub Saharan Africans were hunted like witches in Libya.
I did not even mention the slavery of my Eritrean brothers and sisters in Egypt’s Sinai and the deportation and jailing of thousands of Eritreans from Egypt, Libya and Sudan.
The sad and shameful part among some Eritreans who went on Sadam Hussien, Gadaffi and Gamal Abdel Nasser so called scholarship is when they pretend more Arab than the Arab and burned Eritrean languages. Some inferiority laced Eritrean monkeys or shall I say Abeed even said “we are Arabs”.
A Darfur man said once the selfish Arab comes to your village only to rape your wife and daughter, kill the man or take him to slavery and burn down your language, history and heritage, so as to wipe your identity.
The Arabs are so selfish they want the entire Nile and other Ethiopia waters of which 85% comes from the Ethiopian highlands for their own use only while Ethiopians and other Africans are starving for lack if irrigation water. I have more respect to Meles Zenawi now than before for telling the savage and racist Arabs to get lost through his initiative on the Great Renaissance Abay dam is going to insure Africans get their fair share.
Kabbire June 7, 2013
Look how the Egyptian leader exposed his own opposition by inviting them to discuss the Nile Abay river issue without telling them that it was broadcast live.
See in the video below how Arabs act. These are by the way that some nave Eritreans hoped will act to free the Eritreans languishing under Arab Egyptian slavery who are losing their kidneys, limbs, thousands of dollars and their lives.
Just look their disrespect to Africans, except one or two sane ones. Having seen how the ignorant greedy Arab leaders act, you wonder, are these the people the Ghedli leaders used to take orders from?
Worthless institutions begat to more worthless shifta gangs.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=b_mpjU2qIdc
Kabbire June 7, 2013
Do you know that Egypt had already started an $8 billion dollar agro industry project in 1998 in its south western desert to inhabit eight million Egyptians by taking more water from the Nile without consulting Ethiopia and any other African nation? I think it is called the Toshka project.
This only shows the savage Arabs disrespect to Africans. This is the reason the racist Arab regimes and their semi literate intellectuals and media kept their stinking mouths shut while half a million Darfurs perished nor did these Arab xenophobes say a word when the sub Saharan Africans were hunted like witches in Libya.
I did not even mention the slavery of my Eritrean brothers and sisters in Egypt’s Sinai and the deportation and jailing of thousands of Eritreans from Egypt, Libya and Sudan.
The sad and shameful part among some Eritreans who went on Sadam Hussien, Gadaffi and Gamal Abdel Nasser so called scholarship is when they pretend more Arab than the Arab and burned Eritrean languages. Some inferiority laced Eritrean monkeys or shall I say Abeed even said “we are Arabs”.
A Darfur man said once the selfish Arab comes to your village only to rape your wife and daughter, kill the man or take him to slavery and burn down your language, history and heritage, so as to wipe your identity.
The Arabs are so selfish they want the entire Nile and other Ethiopia waters of which 85% comes from the Ethiopian highlands for their own use only while Ethiopians and other Africans are starving for lack if irrigation water. I have more respect to Meles Zenawi now than before for telling the savage and racist Arabs to get lost through his initiative on the Great Renaissance Abay dam is going to insure Africans get their fair share.
MightyEmbasoyra June 7, 2013
Let me ask a question on this, how about if the source of the river was in Israel? Would you think Egypt behave that way? Israel would reply them, we will do our water whatever we want or you do something you will get it – punished hard. Egypt would be as quiet as ……
So, now put the question back on what the current sources of the river. Egypt should be polite and appreciative for what they are getting.
Britain purposely signed the agreement while knowing this will create big issue down the road. They have no right to do so and that agreement is void. For God sake, those African countries are not under colonization and why people expect otherwise.
By the way, Eritrea has nothing to do with the river – otherwise someone would tell us – are you guys still under Ethiopia?
Isayas is very lucky guy – he always finds something to stir.
Kabbire June 7, 2013
For those interested and who can understand Amharic, this is how Meles explained about the Grand Renaissance Abay Dam and Egypt to the Ethiopian parliament. He said “please do not focus on the stinko and filthy words coming from Egypt … We know how good the Egyptian people are”. We do not want to lose sleep of what Egypt can do because they can not but they may use here and there their slaves such as Issaias and al Shabbab … ”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=ILWYNjR4-TQ
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Tamrat Tamrat June 7, 2013
Were not meless the slave of Egypt when he was a Brother in arm With shabians Egypt has used stabiltiy in horn of africa a way of life.
sara June 7, 2013
correction–I think meles was a #one slave in Africa. sabia/alshebab are gangsters.
Gebez June 7, 2013
I am very proud of the position many Eritreans have taken regarding this issue. You see? “ንእመት ስድሪ ኣላታ” ይብሉ ለባማት ወለድና::ሓበሻዊነት ሓዊ ዝተፍእ ስምዒት እዩ!! እንታይ እሞ ዋጋ ኣለዎ??? ፀለእቲ ታሪኽናን መንነትናን እንደሞ ኣታሊሎምናን::
sara June 7, 2013
heyy, let me tell you brother. this is not n
sara June 7, 2013
let me tell u bro. this is not Eritrean’s busyness. so let them solve their problem.
as far as I know Egyptians/Ethiopians are same sheet.
Facts-ain't-Pretenders! June 7, 2013
Tamrat Tamrat,
don’t be such a skull head Ethiopian. see the bigger picture. Even so many sensible Eritreans are on your side. It is Neither about Meles nor about Shabia. Cleanese your too politicized mind. This is about the rightful share of the people of Ethiopia for the rier that originates from their (your) own belly. If you have some senses.
If you had a feel-to-=feel, you need no one to tell you how deeply evil the Arabs soceity is and how it treats your Eritreans & ethiopians & all black Africans. Even the Sudanese “whites” are NO different to their own Black Sudense. So, if your skin color is what you are judged by, then, your complete Human Dignity is what is in question in the eyes of these sewage rats.
YOU have to admire Meles Zenawi for his dynamic flexibility in getting Ethiopia to a position that NO other Ethiopian leaders (Emperor, Derg) DARED to even raise a question of it. Don’t let your narrow tribalism blind you what Ethiopia’s critical survival source. If the evil “shaebia” did something good for Eritra as Meles has, countles Eritreans would have still supported him.!
MightyE: you always put things into perspective beautifully! My hats off to yaa!
sara June 11, 2013
@ tamrat wait a mint this is not an Eritrean issue period. go and solve your problem ok. Asseb never been your land either. by the way, Ethiopian’s are never been a good friend or neighbor to Eritrean’s. same as those Egyptian’s.
so, solve your problem.
get z hell out…
Facts-ain't-Pretenders! June 7, 2013
Gebez,
Ditto !!!
Facts-ain't-Pretenders! June 7, 2013
If Meles & whoever advised him hadn’t mis-envisioned, mis-conceptualized and not
(a) stopping from arriving at the threshold of the coward leader of the gangs in Asmara, (b) stopping from marching into Asmara to finish off Isaias
If Meles hadn’t feared
(a) the Unknown X (chaos,instablitiy….)that “may” surface by finishing off Isaias Afewerki in June 2000
then — what a wonderful peace could have knocked to the doors of Eritrea & Ethiopia.
Our people in Eritrea would have re-claimed their hard won independence & freedom, and the gov’t of Ethiopia wouldn’t have slept one eye open facing North.
Meles HAD miscalculated the no-peace-no-war thinking that it would have aroused the people of Eritrea and dismantle PFDJ, but he had failed to realize how Isaias is perfected, to his favor, in dealing with the people of Eritrea. It may have benefited Ethiopia & eritrea, if that chance of June 2000 was not passed. Alas, it gave PFDJ to lick its wounds and heal.
Nega Belay June 7, 2013
This has nothing to do with Eritrea . Supporting Ethiopia or Egypt doesn’t make sense to Eritreans . Whether you are a Muslim or a Christian or an atheist , the issue is not related to religion . This is a matter of National interest to the concerned parties . Eritrean stand should be “both countries should resolve their differences through dialogue “.
If both countries considers war as a solution , they are both wrong . They should learn from Badem .
If the maddog stands with Egypt for his own interest . His end will come faster than it should be . He knows it very well .
sara June 7, 2013
yes, this is not Eritrean busyness. assenna pls don’t post this kind of news; look you are attracting some cockroach (agame? adgi?.