Latest news with #Al-Arabiya
Al-Ahram Weekly
3 days ago
- Al-Ahram Weekly
Egypt to operate second special train for Sudanese citizens returning home - Foreign Affairs
Egypt's National Railways Authority said Sunday it will operate a second special train to facilitate the voluntary return of Sudanese citizens, displaced by the war and currently residing in Egypt. The move follows the launch of the first such train last week as part of broader efforts reflecting the deep-rooted historical ties and close fraternal relations between Egypt and Sudan. It also underscores Egypt's ongoing commitment to offering humanitarian support to Sudanese displaced by the conflict in Sudan. According to the authority's statement, train number 1940, an air-conditioned third-class service, will depart from Cairo Station at 11:00 a.m. on Monday, 28 July, and arrive at the High Dam Station in Aswan, which serves as a Nile access to the neighbouring nation, at 11:40 p.m. From there, passengers are expected to continue their journey to Sudan aboard Nile riverboats departing from the High Dam Port or via overland routes. 'The Egyptian authorities have eased the return process by exempting returnees from fines and legal accountability, and by providing facilities to accommodate them at certain stations until they reach the Sudanese border crossings,' Sudanese Consul General in Aswan Abdel Qader Abdullah Mohamed said in recent remarks to Al-Arabiya. Omaima Abdullah, Head of the Voluntary Return Committee for Sudanese in Egypt, said in recent media remarks that registration is now open for all Sudanese nationals wishing to return through direct communication via WhatsApp at the following number: (+2) 01557213251. 'Registration is conducted exclusively through this number,' Omaima explained, adding that 'applicants are required to send their personal information, after which the committee will contact them to set travel dates and provide instructions for each trip.' The same train, now designated as train number 1945, will depart from Aswan Station at 8:30 p.m. and arrive at Cairo Station at 9:25 a.m. on Tuesday, 29 July. An additional baggage carriage has been added to the train to help transport personal belongings and ease travel conditions. On Saturday, the United Nations (UN) said that more than 1.3 million people who fled the conflict in Sudan have returned home. This includes over 1 million internally displaced people who have gone back to their areas of origin in recent months, and approximately 320,000 refugees who have crossed back into Sudan, mainly from Egypt and South Sudan. Despite these returns, the UN warned that the situation in many areas remains highly precarious. On the same day, Sudanese Prime Minister Kamil Idris pledged to rebuild Khartoum during his first visit to the war-ravaged capital since taking office in May. Egypt as a primary destination Egypt has seen a significant rise in its Sudanese population amid the ongoing conflict in Sudan, which erupted in April 2023 between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF). Egypt became the primary destination for those fleeing violence. The country now accommodates the largest share of Sudanese who have fled their country since the outbreak of intense conflict. In May, Minister of Foreign Affairs Badr Abdelatty estimated the total number of Sudanese residing in the country at 5.5 million. Meanwhile, according to the Central Agency for Public Mobilisation and Statistics (CAPMAS), Sudanese citizens make up nearly half of Egypt's estimated nine million refugees. The UN has described the situation as the worst humanitarian crisis globally, with approximately 13 million people displaced, whether externally or internally. Of those, over 3.5 million have crossed into neighbouring countries, including Chad, South Sudan, and Egypt. The influx has sparked debate within Egypt about the mounting pressure on public services and infrastructure, as the country grapples with the dual challenge of honouring its humanitarian commitments while managing domestic capacities. Since January 2025, the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) has noted an increase in the voluntary returns of displaced Sudanese citizens from neighbouring countries, citing improving security conditions in Khartoum as a contributing factor. Follow us on: Facebook Instagram Whatsapp Short link:
Ya Libnan
3 days ago
- Politics
- Ya Libnan
Barrack piles on pressure on Lebanon over Hezbollah disarmament
The special envoy has led US discussions with Lebanese leaders over Hezbollah's disarmament over the months [Getty/file photo] US envoy Tom Barrack has continued to apply pressure on the Lebanese government to speed up the disarming of Hezbollah . The ambassador to Turkey and special envoy for Syria warned on Sunday that the Lebanese government's credibility 'rests on its ability to match principle with practice,' in reference to pledges that Beirut has made to gain state monopoly on arms. 'The government and Hezbollah need to fully commit and act now in order to not consign the Lebanese people to the stumbling status quo,' he said. 'As long as Hezbollah retains arms, words will not suffice.' On Friday, Lebanese President Joseph Aoun stressed that negotiations with Hezbollah remain ongoing but acknowledged that they were progressing very slowly. 'There is some responsiveness to the ideas we're discussing, even things are moving at a slow pace,' he said. Hezbollah had rejected Barrack's roadmap that would see the group disarm within four months, in exchange for a halt to Israeli withdrawal from the country, as well as a cessation of strikes. The group's current leader, Naim Qassem, said: 'We are a people who do not surrender', and rejected US pressure to act on the matter. Qassem , while maintaining being open to dialogue, has continuously stressed that the group giving up its arms would be 'suicidal' amid Israel's frequent strikes on the country's south. Disarmament has been the centre of national and international negotiations with Lebanon following the November ceasefire, with Barrack making several diplomatic visits to Beirut on the matter since his appointment. One of Lebanon's most high-profile politicians, Walid Jumblatt , spoke in favour of Hezbollah's disarmament in an interview with Saudi channel Al-Arabiya . The Druze leader said that Hezbollah must 'realise that keeping its weapons and missiles serves no purpose,' stressing that it would cause problems for the country and Lebanon would 'not stabilise' as a result, in Saturday's interview. Founded in the 1980s in response to Israel's invasion of southern Lebanon, the Iran-backed group grew into a Shia Islamist party and militant group. The group has fought several conflicts against Israel, but was significantly weakened late last year after Tel Aviv launched a full-scale war in Lebanon, in parallel with the military onslaught in Gaza. Several high-profile members were killed, including its Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah, as well as his successor, Hashem Safieddine. More than 4,000 Lebanese were killed by Israel, who struck the country's south, Beirut and the eastern Beqaa Valley, among other locations. A ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah was then reached in November last year, which Israel routinely continues to violate, cling that Hezbollah has not complied with UN Resolutions 1559 and 1701 which call for disarming all militias in Lebanon New Arab
Mada
7 days ago
- Mada
Police close off Kafr al-Sanabsah village in Monufiya after fatal crash exposes harsh living conditions
Police officers have been patrolling near the homes of victims of last month's deadly road crash in Monufiya to ensure that no 'outsiders' approach the families, three residents told Mada Masr. They were among four residents who said that security forces have surrounded the village of Kafr al-Sanabsah for over two weeks in an effort to keep journalists out. The heightened security comes after dire living conditions in the village were thrown into the spotlight by a major crash on the Regional Ring Road in Monufiya which killed 18 women and girls, aged 14 to 22, from Kafr al-Sanabsah on their commute to work as day laborers at agricultural export facilities. As scrutiny of the village increased, security forces have made it difficult for anyone from outside the village to enter. A car carrying visitors who had come to offer condolences was blocked on the grounds that they were not locals, a relative of two of the victims said. Officers inspected the car, checked ID cards for potential journalists and only allowed the group through after calling one of the victims' families to verify they were expecting guests. A relative of another victim said that a car affiliated with Al-Arabiya was barred from entering the village to conduct interviews. Other journalists, who had reached out to families by phone, canceled planned visits after being warned that police would not let them in. A third source, related to another two victims, said security even tried to block him from entry because he lives in a neighboring village. The incident brought attention to the village's dire living conditions, drawing many journalists and visitors in its aftermath. Media reports soon spotlighted the widespread poverty and lack of basic services in the village — particularly educational facilities. When Mada Masr visited Kafr al-Sanabsah, residents noted that there is only one middle school and no secondary school, forcing students to commute to nearby villages or the Menouf district to attend industrial or commercial secondary schools — adding to the financial burden that drives women and girls to seek work despite the high risk and minimal protections for agricultural laborers. Within a week of the crash, the state announced compensation packages: LE200,000 per victim's family from the Social Solidarity Ministry, LE300,000 from the Labor Ministry and LE100,000 from the Transport Ministry. Donations from business figures followed, including Ahmed Ezz and Mohamed Aboul Enein. Later, an unnamed businessman pledged LE2 million to each victim's family — though two families told Mada Masr they are yet to receive the money. 'They couldn't just let us have the donations,' one relative of a victim of the crash said. The village mayor Mohamed Allam summoned the victims' families to a meeting — some of whom attended. There, he asked each family to contribute part of the compensation and donated funds toward buying land to build a secondary school. He proposed that each family donate the equivalent of one kirat of land — around LE250,000. Several residents did not welcome the mayor's request. The relative criticized it, saying that the state owes it to residents to build a school. 'People here really need that money,' he said. 'You came and saw the state of the houses.' The father of one of the victims told Mada Masr that the mayor later tried to persuade those who objected by sending respected community members to mediate. Shortly after the meeting, however, a video circulated on social media in which Allam's brother — according to the same source — said that the initiative to buy land had come voluntarily from the villagers themselves. Mada Masr was unable to reach the mayor for comment, as his phone remained unavailable at the time of publishing. But a close associate of his — a member of the pro-state Nation's Future Party — denied that the initiative was the mayor's idea and insisted it originated with the villagers themselves, adding that the government's Haya Karima initiative would eventually fund the construction of the school. The planned school is set to be built on a 3,500 square meter plot of land, but according to the source, the full amount for the purchase had not yet been paid. Before the crash, villagers had already attempted to pool money to buy land for a school, a father of one of the victims told Mada Masr. But their efforts fell through amid what he described as the state's longstanding neglect of the village.
Nahar Net
23-07-2025
- Politics
- Nahar Net
Report: Aoun, Salam to press on with arms monopoly decision despite Hezbollah's 'rejection'
by Naharnet Newsdesk 23 July 2025, 13:22 Hezbollah's 'military wing' has informed Speaker Nabih Berri that it will not hand over its arms and that it is 'not interested in an economic conference or in reconstruction,' unnamed sources told Al-Arabiya's Al-Hadath channel in remarks published Wednesday. 'No one in Hezbollah's leadership can take a decision to hand over the weapons and Hezbollah will not implement any decision even if anyone pledges that,' the sources said. 'Hezbollah is saying that it will not turn in its arms even if Israel withdraws and that it is ready to clash with the (Lebanese) state,' the sources claimed, adding that Berri has informed U.S. envoy Tom Barrack that 'he does not promise that arms will be removed north of the Litani before the year's end even if Israel withdraws.' President Joseph Aoun and Prime Minister Nawaf Salam, however, intend to press on with 'declaring a pledge to monopolize weapons,' the sources said, adding that Aoun and Salam will not allow 'Hezbollah's intransigence' to prevent 'the return to the Arab and international fold.' 'The Lebanese state has been infuriated by Hezbollah's insistence on wasting the chance,' the sources added.
Nahar Net
22-07-2025
- Politics
- Nahar Net
Report: 'Nothing new' after Barrack's 3rd visit to Beirut
by Naharnet Newsdesk 22 July 2025, 16:24 U.S. envoy Tom Barrack's current visit to Lebanon 'ended with the same outcome of the previous visit,' Al-Arabiya's Al-Hadath channel quoted 'sources in Beirut' as saying on Tuesday. 'Hezbollah is seeking to put the blame on the state in order to evade its responsibility,' the sources said adding that 'Lebanon has asked the Americans to fulfill one of its demands so that it can face Hezbollah with it.' Israel has, however, refused to offer any concession, the sources added. Warning that 'the current state of procrastination opens the door to a military escalation,' the sources said 'everyone agrees that Lebanon is headed to a new form of military confrontation.' 'Barrack's visit can be summarized by saying that he did not offer anything new and did not take anything new,' the sources went on to say.
