CAIRO
The Muslim Brotherhood has slammed a tripartite agreement between Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia regarding the latter's plan to build a mega-dam on the Nile River.
"This agreement does not bind Ethiopia to preserve Egypt's rights to the Nile water," Brotherhood spokesman Mohamed Montasser said on Facebook in the early hours of Tuesday.
Leaders of Sudan, Egypt and Ethiopia on Monday signed a declaration of principles on Ethiopia's mega-dam on the Nile River, which Egypt had feared could substantially harm its share of water.
Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi, Ethiopian Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn and Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir signed the declaration in Khartoum, under which the three countries asserted their commitment to cooperation and to serve the interests of the three nations.
"[Al-Sisi] signed an agreement that was not in line with the basic principles of international law," Montasser said, going on to describe Cairo's signing of the declaration as "high treason."
For their part, a group of pro-Sisi Egyptian politicians and activists have launched a "national rally" campaign to support the leader's domestic and foreign policies, including the management of Egypt's water security issue.
According to local reports, the campaign's signatories included Kamal al-Hilbawi, a member of the government-appointed National Council for Human Rights, as well as the new head of the Journalists Syndicate Yahia Qalash.
"Together we would firmly support the strategic policies of the Egyptian state and the friendly sentiments its political leadership carries towards Sudan and Ethiopia," the campaign's founding statement said.
Speaking in Khartoum on Monday, Desalegn reassured Egyptians that construction of the dam would not harm their country, reaffirming Addis Ababa's commitment to preserving the interests of the three countries.
For his part, al-Sisi said the deal was a framework agreement that the three countries would build on, asserting that Egypt was committed to cooperation with Ethiopia and Sudan for the development of the three nations.
Sudan's al-Bashir, meanwhile, said that cooperation was key to development in Nile basin nations.
Ethiopia's Grand Renaissance Dam has been at the center of a diplomatic row between Cairo and Addis Ababa for several months.
While Ethiopia views the dam as a prerequisite for economic development, Egypt fears the project will lead to a marked reduction in its supply of Nile water.
Relations, however, between the two countries have improved since al-Sisi and Desalegn met at an African summit in Equatorial Guinea last summer.
