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WORLD NEWS Saturday 1 February 2020

In this June 28, 2013 file photo, the Blue Nile river flows near
the site of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam near Assosa,
Ethiopia.
Associated Press
3 African nations

resolve issues ahead

collapsed on the floor of the boat, rescued from aboard an inflatable dinghy in the mid of filling Nile dam
In this image provided by the Turkish Military, members of Turkish forces, left, carry migrants

Mediterranean Sea, Wednesday, Jan. 29, 2020.
Associated Press By MARTIN CRUTSINGER filing the reservoir behind
Rights groups to Italy: Don't AP Economics Writer the dam too quickly could

renew migrant deal with Libya WASHINGTON (AP) — Of- significantly reduce the
ficials from Egypt, Ethiopia amount of Nile water avail-
and Sudan said Friday they able to Egypt.
ROME (AP) — Human rights ed detention facilities. Citing the worsening armed have cleared the way for In addition to setting a
advocates and aid groups U.N. refugee officials have conflict between rival gov- the filling and operation of schedule for filing the
slammed Italy on Friday for said that migrants held in ernments in Libya, she said a $5 billion dam project on dam's reservoir, the offi-
deciding to extend a deal the centers are frequently "a great amount of evi- the Nile River. cials discussed developing
that facilitates the return of beaten, raped and denied dence continues to point In a joint statement issued a system for filing the res-
Europe-bound migrants to adequate food. to serious human rights after four days of talks in ervoir during a drought or
detention centers in Libya Doctors Without Borders, violations faced there by Washington, the foreign prolonged dry periods and
where detainees are at risk which with another hu- migrants and asylum-seek- ministers and water re- establishing guidelines for
for getting raped and tor- manitarian group oper- ers." sources officials said they operating the dam during
tured. ates a ship that rescues Mijatovic called on Ita- had agreed on a schedule such periods.
Amnesty International said migrants from the Medi- ly and other countries for filing the dam, and oth- "The ministers reaffirmed
the Italian government's terranean Sea, joined the that are members of the er key issues. the importance of trans-
plan to renew the deal for chorus of objections to the Council of Europe, a hu- The final deal is expected boundary cooperation in
another three years on Sun- deal's renewal. It said Italy's man rights body based in to signed by the three the development of the
day makes it "complicit in aid contributes to trapping France, to work for the re- countries by the end of Blue Nile to improve the
this abuse." "innocent and vulnerable" lease of people detained February after the agree- lives of the people of Egypt,
A 2017 accord between people in war-ravaged in the Libyan centers and ment is reviewed, the state- Ethiopia and Sudan," the
Italy and Libya included Libya. to facilitate the creation of ment said. officials said in their state-
equipment and training for The human rights commis- safe transfers of migrants to The Grand Ethiopian Re- ment.
the Libyan coast guard to sioner for the Council of Europe known as "humani- naissance Dam, is around In addition to the officials
intercept migrants who set Europe, Dunja Mijatovic, tarian corridors." 70% completed and will from the three nations, U.S.
off in smugglers' boats from on Friday expressed "regret Italy, together with Catho- supply much-needed elec- Treasury Secretary Steven
the shores of the Northern that Italian authorities have lic groups, for example, tricity to Ethiopia's more Mnuchin and World Bank
African country. not scrapped that agree- have arranged for flights to than 100 million people. President David Malpass
Migrants who get caught ment or — as a minimum — Rome of Syrian refugees in However, Egyptian officials also participated in the
are returned to overcrowd- changed its terms." Lebanon. q have raised concerns that discussions.q