Ethiopian national confirmed killed in Beirut blast

Addis Ababa, August 7, 2020 (FBC) –An Ethiopian national was killed in Tuesday’s blast in Beirut, Lebanon, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA).

Nine other Ethiopians also suffered serious and minor injuries in the blast that rocked the Lebanese capital, said Ambassador Dina Mufti, Spokesperson of MoFA.

In his press briefing, the he further said 218 migrant and unemployed Ethiopian workers due to COVID-19 were repatriated from various countries during the past two weeks.

Regarding the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), Ambassador Dina said Ethiopia presented its version of the guidelines and rules on the filling of the dam in the talks resumed last Monday.

However, the talks were suspended due to Sudan and Egypt’s request to adjourn the meeting to be able to consider the guidelines and rules that Ethiopia had communicated, he said.

Ambassador Dina said Ethiopia rejected the request made at the talks to reach an agreement on the sustainable use of water, which is not related to the dam negotiations.

During the talks, Ethiopia reiterated its firm stance that the issues of sustainable use of Abbay water to be seen in another session and with the involvement of all Nile basin countries, he said.

The government of Ethiopia is hopeful that the negotiations will continue as per the plan next Monday, he said.