Egypt, Eritrea, Somalia forge closer ties in volatile Horn

Update Egypt, Eritrea, Somalia forge closer ties in volatile Horn
Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, Isaias Afwerki and Abdel Fattah El-Sisi meet in Asmara, Eritrea, Oct. 10, 2024. (AFP)
Short Url
Updated 11 October 2024
Follow

Egypt, Eritrea, Somalia forge closer ties in volatile Horn

Egypt, Eritrea, Somalia forge closer ties in volatile Horn
  • Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki, Egypt’s Abdel Fattah El-Sisi and Hassan Sheikh Mohamud of Somalia meet in Asmara
  • Cairo has also long been at odds with Addis Ababa, particularly over the vast Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam on the Blue Nile

NAIROBI: The leaders of Egypt, Eritrea and Somalia pledged Thursday to work together on regional security at an unprecedented summit held against a backdrop of heightened tensions in the Horn of Africa.

Concerns about the stability of the volatile area have mounted over the war in Sudan, a controversial deal between Ethiopia and the breakaway Somali region of Somaliland, and the situation in the Red Sea, where Yemen’s Houthis have waged numerous attacks on vessels.

Thursday’s summit in Asmara signalled the forging of a new regional alliance in the Horn, with Ethiopia — Africa’s second-most populous nation — left out in the cold.

Relations have soured dramatically between Ethiopia and neighboring Somalia, which was enraged by the Somaliland maritime deal and has since moved closer to Addis Ababa’s longtime regional rival Cairo.

The three-way summit in Asmara was called by Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki and included his Egyptian counterpart Abdel Fattah El-Sisi and Hassan Sheikh Mohamud of Somalia.

After their talks, the leaders issued a statement that was posted online by the Eritrean information ministry in which they pledged to bolster three-way ties in a bid to improve regional stability.

They said there needed to be “unequivocal respect for the sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of the countries of the region,” without mentioning any nation by name.

The three also underlined the imperative of “confronting interference in the internal affairs of the countries of the region under any pretext or justification; coordinating joint efforts to achieve regional stability and creating a conducive climate for joint and sustainable development.”

Turning specifically to Somalia, they agreed to deepen three-way cooperation to help the troubled nation “confront various internal and external challenges and to enable the Somali National Federal Army to confront terrorism in all its forms, protect its land and sea borders, and maintain its territorial integrity.”

The three also discussed the crisis in Sudan and the Red Sea, and agreed to set up a tripartite committee of their foreign ministers for “strategic cooperation in all fields.”

It was El-Sisi’s first visit to Asmara — and reportedly the first by an Egyptian president since a stop there by Hosni Mubarak in the early 1990s — although Isaias has visited Egypt before.

Mohamud though has made several trips to Eritrea, one of the most isolated states in the world.

Regional rivalries were laid bare after the January memorandum of understanding which would see Ethiopia, one of the biggest landlocked countries in the world, lease a stretch of coastline from Somaliland for a naval base and port.

Somalia — which like the rest of the world refuses to recognize Somaliland’s 1991 declaration of independence — angrily branded it an assault on its sovereignty and territorial integrity.

In response, Somalia signed a major military deal with Egypt in August, while Cairo pledged troops for a new African Union mission against the Al-Shabab jihadist group.

Cairo has also long been at odds with Addis Ababa, particularly over the vast Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam on the Blue Nile, which it says threatens its vital water supply.

Relations between Addis Ababa and Asmara have also been deteriorating recently, even though Eritrean troops backed Ethiopian government forces in the brutal 2020-2022 war against Tigrayan rebels.

Analysts say Eritrea was not happy with the peace agreement between Addis Ababa and Asmara’s longstanding enemy the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF), and still has troops in parts of Tigray.

Last month Ethiopian Airlines said it was suspending flights to Asmara because of “difficult” operating conditions.

But at a press briefing Thursday, Ethiopian foreign ministry spokesman Nebiat Getachew described the relationship between Addis Ababa and Asmara as “peaceful” and said they enjoyed “good neighborliness and good friendship.”

Dubbed the “North Korea” of Africa, Eritrea formally declared independence from Ethiopia in 1993 after three decades of war and has since been ruled with an iron fist by Isaias.

Subsequent border disputes blew up into a war between 1998 and 2000, but two decades later the two countries reached a rapprochement, which earned Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed the Nobel Peace Prize.


Yemen’s Houthis to keep attacking Israeli ships despite US deal

Updated 3 sec ago
Follow

Yemen’s Houthis to keep attacking Israeli ships despite US deal

Yemen’s Houthis to keep attacking Israeli ships despite US deal
“The waterways are safe for all international ships except Israeli ones,” Alejri told AFP
“Israel is not part of the agreement, it only includes American and other ships“

SANAA: Yemen’s Houthi militants will continue targeting Israeli ships in the Red Sea, an official told AFP on Wednesday, despite a ceasefire that ended weeks of intense US strikes on the Iran-backed group.
A day after the Houthis agreed to stop firing on ships plying the key trade route off their shores, a senior official told AFP that Israel was excluded from the deal.
“The waterways are safe for all international ships except Israeli ones,” Abdulmalik Alejri, a member of the Houthi political bureau, told AFP.
“Israel is not part of the agreement, it only includes American and other ships,” he said.
The Houthis, who have controlled large swathes of Yemen for more than a decade, began firing on Israel-linked shipping in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden in November 2023, weeks after the start of the Israel-Hamas war.
They broadened their campaign to target ships tied to the United States and Britain after military strikes by the two countries began in January 2024.
Alejri said the Houthis would now “only” attack Israeli ships. In the past, vessels visiting Israel, or those with tenuous Israeli links, were in the militants’ sights.
The US-Houthi deal was announced after deadly Israeli strikes on Tuesday put Sanaa airport out of action in revenge for a Houthi missile strike on Israel’s Ben Gurion Airport.
Sanaa airport director Khaled alShaief told the militants’ Al-Masirah television Wednesday the Israeli attack had destroyed terminal buildings and caused $500 million in damage.
Oman said it had facilitated an agreement between Washington and the militants that “neither side will target the other... ensuring freedom of navigation.”
US President Donald Trump, who will visit Gulf countries next week, trumpeted the deal, saying the Houthis had “capitulated.”
“They say they will not be blowing up ships anymore, and that’s... the purpose of what we were doing,” he said during a White House press appearance.
The ceasefire followed weeks of stepped-up US strikes aimed at deterring Houthi attacks on shipping. The US attacks left 300 people dead, according to an AFP tally of Houthi figures.
The Pentagon said last week that US strikes had hit more than 1,000 targets in Yemen since mid-March in an operation that has been dubbed “Rough Rider.”
Alejri said recent US-Iran talks in Muscat “provided an opportunity” for indirect contacts between Sanaa and Washington, leading to the ceasefire.
“America was the one who started the aggression against us, and at its beginning, we did not resume our operations on Israel,” he added.
“We did not target any American ships or warships until they targeted us.”
Scores of Houthi missile and drone attacks have drastically reduced cargo volumes on the Red Sea route, which normally carries about 12 percent of global maritime trade.
The Houthis say their campaign — as well as a steady stream of attacks on Israeli territory — is in solidarity with the Palestinians.

Hamas says commander killed in Israel Lebanon strike

Hamas says commander killed in Israel Lebanon strike
Updated 10 min 36 sec ago
Follow

Hamas says commander killed in Israel Lebanon strike

Hamas says commander killed in Israel Lebanon strike
  • The dawn strike killed one person
  • The Israeli military confirmed that it killed Ahmed, adding that he was “the head of operations in Hamas’s Western Brigade in Lebanon“

SIDON, Lebanon: Hamas said one of its commanders was killed in an Israeli strike on the south Lebanon city of Sidon on Wednesday, the latest attack despite a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah.
Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency said the dawn strike killed one person.
Hamas named him as Khaled Ahmed Al-Ahmed and said he was on his way to pray.
“As we mourn our heroic martyr, we pledge to God Almighty, and then to our people and our nation, to continue on the path of resistance,” the Palestinian militant group said in a statement.
The Israeli military confirmed that it killed Ahmed, adding that he was “the head of operations in Hamas’s Western Brigade in Lebanon.”
It alleged he had been engaged in weapons smuggling and advancing “numerous” attacks against Israel.
Israel has continued to launch regular strikes in Lebanon despite the November 27 truce which sought to halt more than a year of hostilities with Hezbollah including two months of full-blown war.
Under the deal, Hezbollah was to pull back its fighters north of Lebanon’s Litani River, some 30 kilometers (20 miles) from the Israeli border, and dismantle any remaining military infrastructure to its south.
Israel was to withdraw all its forces from Lebanon, but it has kept troops in five positions that it deems “strategic.”
A Lebanese security source told AFP that Hezbollah had withdrawn fighters from south of the Litani and dismantled most of its military infrastructure in the area.
Lebanon says it has respected its commitments and has called on the international community to pressure Israel to end its attacks and withdraw from the five border positions.
Last week, Lebanon’s top security body the Higher Defense Council warned Hamas against using the country for attacks on Israel.
The group has since handed over several Palestinians accused of firing rockets from Lebanon into Israel in March.


Yemen, Iran will be left ‘unrecognizable’ if attacks continue, says Israeli envoy

Israel’s UN ambassador Danny Danon delivers remarks during Israeli Independence Day celebrations at the UN Headquarters.
Israel’s UN ambassador Danny Danon delivers remarks during Israeli Independence Day celebrations at the UN Headquarters.
Updated 07 May 2025
Follow

Yemen, Iran will be left ‘unrecognizable’ if attacks continue, says Israeli envoy

Israel’s UN ambassador Danny Danon delivers remarks during Israeli Independence Day celebrations at the UN Headquarters.
  • UN Ambassador Danny Danon was speaking at Israeli Independence Day celebrations
  • Warning came as Israel ‘fully disabled’ Sanaa airport in retaliatory strikes on Tuesday

NEW YORK CITY: Israel’s UN ambassador threatened Yemen’s Houthi militia and Iran in remarks made during Israeli Independence Day celebrations.

“If the Houthis and their Iranian masters want to play with fire, they will find their own lands unrecognizable,” Danny Danon said on Tuesday at UN Headquarters in New York City.

The warning came as Israel launched a series of attacks on Yemen in retaliation for a Houthi missile attack on Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv days earlier.

Israeli jets struck Sanaa’s international airport as well as the Red Sea port of Hodeidah on Tuesday.

The Yemeni capital’s airport was left “fully disabled” by the attack, the Israeli military said in a statement.

Washington and the Houthi militia on Tuesday also reached a deal to end the militia’s attacks on Red Sea shipping.

But the ceasefire, mediated by Oman, does not include an agreement to limit Houthi strikes on Israel, officials from the militia said later.

Dozens of ambassadors and Jewish community leaders took part in the Independence Day event in New York City.

Robert Kraft, the billionaire owner of the New England Patriots football team who has deep ties to Israel, also attended.

Danon said: “Israel is not a footnote in history — it is a driving force in history. Even after 77 years of independence, we are still forced to fight for our very right to exist in security and peace.

“But time and again we have shown the world the unbeatable spirit of the Jewish people — the ability to turn suffering into strength, isolation into unity and despair into hope.”

Malawi’s ambassador to the UN, Dr. Agnes Chimbiri-Molande, also took part in the event. She recently joined an Israeli-organized delegation to Auschwitz as part of the March of the Living organization.

Chimbiri-Molande said: “Visiting Israel was a powerful and unforgettable experience for me. I stood in the face of destruction — but also in the face of hope.

“Israel is a living example to the world of how one can continue to build and believe, even when attempts are made repeatedly to destroy it.”

Kraft, founder of the Stand Up to Jewish Hate initiative, has led extensive pro-Israel campaigning efforts in the US. Last year, he likened nationwide university protests against the war in Gaza to the forces that led to the rise of Nazism in Germany during the 1930s.

Kraft said at the Israeli Mission’s event: “Today more than ever we must stand shoulder to shoulder with Israel. The Jewish people have contributed to the entire world — in science, technology, medicine and humanity.

“It is time for the world to recognize and protect this contribution.”


Syrian leader arrives in France in first European trip

Syrian leader arrives in France in first European trip
Updated 7 min 18 sec ago
Follow

Syrian leader arrives in France in first European trip

Syrian leader arrives in France in first European trip
  • Sharaa, who will hold talks with French President Emmanuel Macron, received an exemption from the United Nations to travel to Paris as he remains on a terrorism sanctions list
  • The two leaders will discuss how to ensure Syria’s sovereignty and security, the handling of minorities after recent attacks against Alawites and Druze

PARIS: Syrian President Ahmed Al-Sharaa arrived in Paris on Wednesday, his first trip to Europe since the overthrow of Bashar Assad in December, as he seeks international support for his efforts to bring greater stability to his war-shattered country.
Sharaa, who will hold talks with French President Emmanuel Macron, received an exemption from the United Nations to travel to Paris as he remains on a terrorism sanctions list for his previous leadership of Islamist armed group Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS), a former Al-Qaeda affiliate.
The two leaders will discuss how to ensure Syria’s sovereignty and security, the handling of minorities after recent attacks against Alawites and Druze, counterterrorism efforts against Daesh militants and the coordination of aid and economic support, including an easing of sanctions, French officials said.
The visit marks a diplomatic boost for Sharaa from a Western power at a time when the United States is refusing to recognize any entity as the government of Syria and keeping sanctions in place.
“We are not writing a blank cheque and we will judge (him) on actions,” French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot told TF1 TV channel on Wednesday.
He added that Paris wanted to ensure that Syria focused on fighting impunity to curtail sectarian violence and its full engagement in tackling Daesh militants.
“If Syria were to collapse today it would be like rolling out a red carpet for Islamic State,” Barrot said.
The Franco-Alawite Collective is holding a protest against Sharaa in central Paris on Wednesday afternoon.
The same group filed a legal complaint on April 11 to the Paris prosecutor, seen by Reuters, aimed at Sharaa and some of his ministers for genocide and crimes against humanity over the mass killings in March of Alawaites in the country’s coastal region.

CAUTIOUS RAPPROCHEMENT
France welcomed Assad’s fall and has increasingly fostered ties with Sharaa’s transitional authorities. Macron recently held a trilateral video meeting with Sharaa and Lebanon’s President Joseph Aoun as part of efforts to ease tensions on the border.
France last month appointed a charge d’affaires in Damascus with a small team of diplomats as a step toward fully reopening its embassy.
Paris believes it has a card to play in Syria, having cut ties with Assad in 2012 and having refused thereafter to restore ties with his government even after opposition fighters were badly defeated and confined to northern pockets of the country.
It traditionally backed a broadly secular exiled opposition and Kurdish forces in northeastern Syria, where it already has special forces.
Over the past months France played an intermediary role between Sharaa and the Kurds as the United States began reducing its presence and the new Syrian leader looked to bring the area back under centralized control from Damascus.
A French presidency official said Paris had been holding talks with the Americans on how to handle Washington’s withdrawal and how France could play a bigger role.
With the World Bank estimating reconstruction costs in Syria at more than $250 billion, Sharaa is in desperate need of sanctions relief to kickstart an economy battered by 14 years of civil war. During that period the US, the European Union and Britain imposed tough sanctions on the Assad government.
The EU has lifted some sanctions, while some others that target individuals and entities are due to expire on June 1.
Syria hopes the EU will not renew those measures. Their renewal needs consensus among all 27 member states, although the bloc could opt for a limited renewal or delist key institutions such as the Central Bank or other entities that are needed for economic recovery, including energy, infrastructure, finance.


Sisi: Greece, Egypt set to sign deal to boost ties

Sisi: Greece, Egypt set to sign deal to boost ties
Updated 07 May 2025
Follow

Sisi: Greece, Egypt set to sign deal to boost ties

Sisi: Greece, Egypt set to sign deal to boost ties
  • The two countries seek to step up political coordination to help safeguard stability in the Eastern Mediterranean
  • The leaders were expected to stress respect for international law amid the Gaza war

ATHENS: Greece and Egypt will sign a “strategic partnership” agreement on Wednesday as the two countries seek to step up political coordination to help safeguard stability in the Eastern Mediterranean, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi said.
“Our relations are traditional and historical. We have the basis to enhance this relationship,” said El-Sisi during a televised meeting with Greek President Constantine Tassoulas in Athens. “We will have today the chance to sign a joint declaration for a strategic partnership.”
El-Sisi is due to meet Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, more than a year after they agreed to set up a cooperation board of senior officials from both countries to improve ties. The two leaders were expected to reaffirm their joint stance over the need to respect international law to promote peace in a turbulent region amid the ongoing war in Gaza, a Greek government official said.
Migration was also expected to top the agenda of bilateral talks as European governments have long been worried about the risk of instability in Egypt, a country of 106 million people where economic adversity has pushed increasing numbers to migrate.
Egypt largely shut off irregular migration from its north coast in 2016, but the Greek islands of Crete and Gavdos have seen a steep rise in migrant arrivals, mostly from Afghanistan and Egypt. The European Union last year announced a 7.4 billion euro ($8.40 billion) funding package and an upgraded relationship with Egypt, in part of a push to stem migrant flows from Egypt to Europe.

Last month, its executive arm included Egypt, where human rights have come under scrutiny, on a list of “safe countries” where failed asylum seekers could be returned.