Ethiopia and Egypt trade blame over Nile floods amid GERD dispute
Cairo accused Addis Ababa of "reckless" dam management, claiming that sudden water releases following the dam's September inauguration caused what it described as a "man-made flood."
Ethiopia and Egypt have reignited their long-running dispute over the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), trading sharp accusations after severe flooding along the Nile.
Cairo accused Addis Ababa of "reckless" dam management, claiming that sudden water releases following the dam's September inauguration caused what it described as a "man-made flood."
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Egypt's Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation alleged that Ethiopian operators, after hastily filling the reservoir "for a media snapshot," abruptly discharged nearly two billion cubic metres of water throughout September.
The ministry said the flow rate jumped from 485 million cubic metres on September 10 to 780 million by September 27, inundating farmland in both Sudan and Egypt and "putting lives and livelihoods at risk."
Addis Ababa swiftly rejected the charges, denouncing Cairo's claims as "falsehoods" and "misrepresentations."
Ethiopia's Ministry of Water and Energy over the weekend countered that the dam's regulated releases had actually averted a more devastating natural flood, arguing that without the GERD, historical peak flows exceeding 800 million cubic metres per day would have unleashed "historic destruction" after heavy rains.
The renewed exchange underscores the fragile state of Nile diplomacy.
Since Ethiopia began construction of the massive hydropower project, relations with Egypt have oscillated between tense negotiations and outright recriminations.
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