The GERD impasse was the talk of the town on the nation’s airwaves last night: Every angle, nay every blade of grass, was covered by the talking heads last night: Foreign Ministery Sameh Shoukry’s letter to the UN Security Council (more on that in this morning’s Diplo section, above), Tuesday’s emergency Arab League meeting, and the latest on the negotiations were all covered. Kelma Akhira (watch, runtime: 10:46), Al Hayah Al Youm (watch, runtime: 14:50) and Masaa DMC (watch, runtime: 1:06) were among those that had coverage.

Shoukry dropped into Ala Mas’ouleety to give his take on the situation: Egypt has the backing of the EU and the UN Security Council, as well as the UN Environment Program (UNEP), who are all now evaluating Cairo and Khartoum’s efforts to reach a binding agreement with Ethiopia, Shoukry said in an extended interview on Ala Mas’ouleety (watch, runtime: 01:01:40). The international community worried about the stalled GERD talks and Addis Ababa’s determination to go ahead with its plans to fill the dam in the coming weeks, he said.

Warnings of conflict: Egypt has been ramping up its diplomatic relations with neighboring African and Gulf countries and will not jump straight into war with Ethiopia, though President Abdel Fattah El Sisi would only opt for this scenario unless all other options have been exhausted, pundit Emad Eldin Adib told Kelma Akhira’s Lamees El Hadidi (watch, runtime: 7:06). International support for Egypt’s position on the GERD sets two scenarios should tensions between the three countries continue: either Ethiopia backs down and re-enters negotiations or Egypt launches military action to prevent Ethiopia from filling the dam, an option Adib said would buy time for broader negotiations (watch, runtime: 6:38).

Also getting attention on the airwaves: El Sisi’s meeting with Saudi Crown Prince Mohamed bin Salman in Sharm El Sheikh at the weekend, during which the two leaders discussed several regional and international issues (*cough* GERD *cough*). Hadeeth Al Kahira said last night (watch, runtime: 1:17) that discussions between El Sisi and MbS are likely to have contributed in some way in the arrangement of the Arab League’s emergency meeting on Tuesday, while Adib told Kelma Akhira that Egypt and Saudi Arabia’s relations should play a key role in resolving the dispute (watch, runtime: 17:35).