In what Egyptian President al-Sisi said this week, he hinted that his country is being pressured by threatening to reduce its water reserves so that it will change its policy towards the Gaza Strip and agree to open the border with it. According to him, the issue of Nile water has become a tool to pressure Egypt for “other achievements.”

In Egypt, it is believed that the pressure being exerted on it through the Renaissance Dam in Ethiopia is intended to influence its position in the Gaza context, i.e. opening the border and allowing thousands of Gazans to leave the Strip.

In private, Egyptian diplomats believe that an attempt is being made at the current time to “leverage” the water issue in order to soften Egypt’s position on the issue of crossing the border with Gaza in accordance with Israel’s desire to thin the Gaza population, whether it moves to Sinai or to other destinations in the world.