Excerpts: Egypt,Ethiopia,Sudan Nile agreement.Huthi threat to key waterway.
Saudi:No 'undeserved' nuclear deals for Iran. Condemnation of Hizbullah
March 23, 2015

+++SOURCE: Al-Arabiya News 23 March ’15:”Egypt,Ethiopia,Sudan sign Nile
agreement”, Staff Writer with Reuters
SUBJECT: Egypt,Ethiopia, Sudan Nile agreement
Quote;’Leaders from Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia signed a declaration of
principles on Monday[23 Mar.] relating to Ethiopia's Renaissance Dam.‘

FULL TEXT:Leaders from Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia signed a declaration of
principles on Monday[23 Mar.] relating to Ethiopia's Renaissance Dam on a
tributary of the River Nile.’

Egypt, which relies almost exclusively on the River Nile for farming,
industry and drinking water, has sought assurances that the dam will not
significantly cut the river's flow to its rapidly growing population.

Earlier this week, Egypt declared it was “highly sensitive” toward any
project to store the Nile’s water in upstream countries as it might reduce
the country’s water supply, according to Egyptian irrigation minister Hossam
Moghazi.

During his meeting with a Sudanese media delegation, Moghazi described Egypt’s
current share of Nile water as already not enough to cover the country's
needs.

With Egypt’s population expected to reach 150 million in 2050, the country
will likely need an additional 21 billion cubic meters of water per year to
meet its projected demands, Egypt's National Planning Institute has said

+++SOURCE: Naharnet (Lebanon)23 March ’15:”Yemen Huthi Advance Raises Fears
over Key Waterway”, Agence France Presse
SUBJECT: Huthi threat to Key waterway

QUOTE:”Yemen’s Iran-linked Huthi militiamen are moving within striking
distance … of stratigic strait, a vital corridor through which much of the
world’s maritime trade passes”

FULL TEXT:As they advance south, Yemen's Iran-linked Huthi militiamen are
moving within striking distance of the strategic Bab al-Mandab strait, a
vital corridor through which much of the world's maritime trade passes.

Only about 30 kilometers (20 miles) across at its narrowest point, the
strait separates the Arabian Peninsula from east Africa and links the Red
Sea with the Gulf of AdenNearly 40 percent of global maritime trade is
estimated to pass through the strait, much of it on its way to and from the
Suez Canal.As Yemen's Shiite Huthi militiamen have moved south after seizing
the capital Sanaa last year, concern has been growing about their intentions
for Bab al-Mandab.

The militia on Sunday[22 Mar.] took control of the airport in the key
central city of Taez, tightening the noose on President Abedrabbo Mansour
Hadi in his refuge in the southern city of Aden only about 180 kilometers
(110 miles) away.Hadi fled to Aden after escaping house arrest in Sanaa last
month, and the country has increasingly been divided between the
Huthi-controled north and presidential loyalists in the south.

Security sources say Huthi forces have been dispatched from Taez to the port
of Mocha, some 80 kilometers to the west.From Mocha, a coastal road of
around 100 kilometers leads to Bab al-Mandab.

If the militia does make a move to take control the strait, experts say,
Yemen's crisis could quickly become a global problem.

The Huthis have been closely linked with Iran, which already overlooks
another maritime chokepoint, the Strait of Hormuz linking the Gulf with the
Arabian Sea.If the militia takes control of Bab al-Mandab, "Iran would be
the main winner," said Bassem al-Hakimi, a Yemeni political expert.He said
such a move would give Tehran an additional "card to play in the
negotiations over its nuclear program" with world powers.

There is no doubt that the seizure of coastal areas on the strait would
raise international concern.

Both the United States and France maintain a military presence on the other
side of the strait in Djibouti, and for Egypt the strait is of crucial
importance.Egypt's ambassador to Yemen, Youssef al-Sharqawi, warned recently
that threats to Bab al-Mandab would be a "red line" for Cairo.

"More than 38 percent of global maritime trade passes through the strait,"
he told reporters in Aden.

"The national security of Yemen is closely linked to the security of the Red
Sea, the Gulf and Bab al-Mandab."

Israel has also raised concerns, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu
warning of an Iranian threat to the strait in a speech to the U.S. Congress
earlier this month.

"Backed by Iran, Huthis are seizing control of Yemen, threatening the
strategic straits at the mouth of the Red Sea. Along with the Straits of
Hormuz, that would give Iran a second chokepoint on the world's oil supply,"
he said.

But some experts are skeptical about any danger to the strait posed by the
Huthi advance.

"The whole thing is a total red herring," said Richard Dalton, a former
British ambassador to Iran and associate fellow at the Chatham House think
tank.Dalton said there was no reason to believe that Tehran -- whose links
with the Huthis he said have been exaggerated -- would want to complicate
shipping through the strait."The Iranians are pro-free passage and they play
by the rules. They want to be respected so it is unlikely that either Iran
or the Huthi movement would seek to disrupt shipping there," he added.

+++SOURCE: Naharnet (Lebanon) 23 March ’15:”Saudi Says Iran Should Not Get
‘Undeserved’ Nuclear Deals”, Agence France Presse
SUBJECT:Saudi: No ‘undeserved’ nuclear deals for Iran

Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Saud al-Faisal said on Monday[23 Mar.] that
Iran, which is negotiating with world powers on its nuclear program, should
not get an "undeserved deal."

"It is impossible that Iran should get undeserved deals," Prince Saud said
at a joint news conference with visiting British Foreign Secretary Philip
Hammond.

+++SOURCE: Naharnet (Lebanon) 23 March ’15:”Report: Doha,Riyadh Pushing fo
Human Rights Council Condemnation of Hizbullah”, by Naharnet News Desk

SUBJECT: Condemnation of Hizbullah

QUOTE:”Qatar and Saudi Arabia are reportedly leading a campaign for the
adoption of of a statement by the U.N.Human Rights Council in Geneva that
slams Hizbullah’s presence in Syria”

Qatar and Saudi Arabia are reportedly leading a campaign for the adoption of
a statement by the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva that slams
Hizbullah's presence in Syria.

As Safir daily on Monday[23 Mar.] said that the two Gulf countries are
seeking to include a clause in the closing statement of the council's annual
meeting to condemn Hizbullah's participation in the war in the neighboring
country.

But Lebanon's foreign ministry entered a diplomatic battle to stop such a
move, said the newspaper.

The ministry has held contacts with several member states to urge them not
to include such a clause in the statement and to only refer to “foreign
fighters” present in Syria.

According to As Safir, the ministry has stressed that the priority of the
Lebanese authorities at the current stage is to safeguard stability and
avoid anything that creates chaos.

It reportedly told the representatives of member states that the
draft-statement in its current formula does not fall in favor of Lebanon's
stability.

Last year, Lebanon thwarted a similar attempt after Riyadh and Doha reacted
positively to its demand not to condemn Hizbullah, which is fighting
alongside troops loyal to Syrian President Bahsar Assad.

But in 2013, the 47-member Council backed a resolution from the United
States, Britain, Qatar, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Turkey, condemning “the
intervention of all foreign combatants in the Syrian Arab Republic,
including those fighting on behalf of the regime and most recently
Hizbullah.”

In December last year, the U.N. General Assembly also adopted a resolution
that strongly condemned the interference of foreign fighters in Syria, in
addition to the “Hizbullah militia.”
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Sue Lerner -Associate, IMRA