Located on the border between Egyptians and Sudan, a new country has been claimed, set to house oppressed and evacuated migrants under the name “Kingdom of the Yellow Mountain”. This announcement, made by the kingdom’s Prime Minister Nadera Awad Nasif, ignited controversy on social media networks, met with officials’ silence on behalf of the two concerned countries.
The so-called state was initially introduced in a brief videoclip on YouTube as a 2,060 kilometer land spreading in North Africa on a zone known as “Bir al-Tawil” or “Bartazuga Triangle” between Egypt and Sudan. The video claimed that the kingdom does not fall under the sovereignty of any existing country.
In a six-minute unverified video said to be filmed in Ukraine, the Lebanese-American Prime Minister Nasif announced the foundation of the “Kingdom of Yellow Mountain”, detailing the alleged goals behind its establishment.
Nasif claimed that the official declaration of the kingdom’s launch took place at a conference in Ukraine’s Odessa. She did not provide any further details regarding the participants of the mentioned conference, nor the identity of the kingdom’s ruler. Instructions on how one could obtain citizenship in the kingdom and details about the country’s capacity to house people also went unmentioned.
In the same video, the Prime Minster read from an Arabic-language statement, stating that the nation laid its foundation with aims to serve all persons expelled from their original lands.
“A nation of peace, founded on the principle of man’s right to live in dignity under an umbrella of civil and legitimate rights. An exemplary state in all its details,” Nasif called the kingdom.
On her twitter account, Nasif released a document that she alleges contains all necessary information about the new nation, including details about the kingdom’s sovereignty and the objectives it aims at in addition to details on the establishment of the military and police force entities. The statement is in fact not comprehensive, as it lacks major pieces of information.
She pointed out that information on several basic procedures is expected to be disclosed within several days.
The state selected a flag that bears a palm tree centered right below an Arabic verse from the Quran.
The country’s official website is reportedly under construction at the moment. It has several accounts on social media platforms, including on Twitter and Facebook.
The surprising announcement and the insufficient data about a newly instituted state incited numerous debates on social media platforms.
“New country has been introduced to the world all of a sudden. Its appearance is almost like Sindbad fictional stories. No one knows who created this state or is behind it. Most strangely, it is a kingdom without a king,” social media user Naser Hadram tweeted.
Some questioned whether the kingdom is an attempt to provide Palestinians an alternative for their original state.
International law expert Ayman Salamah commented on the issue during his interview with the Egyptian presenter Amr Adib in his program “Al Hekaya” (The story) on MBC Misr Channel, “This supposed new nation is neither a joke nor a farce. It’s serious … but Egypt is not related to the issue by any means.”
In an interview with Alhurra news outlet, Salamah explained that the “Bir al Tawi” area belongs to the Sudanese state while Halayeb and Shalatin is Egypt’s, according to an agreement issued in 1899.
He added that three years after this agreement was issued, a problem arose when the British Interior Minister declared several decisions affirming that the administration of Halayeb and Shalateen is under Sudanese control while Halayeb and Halation’s administration is Egyptian.
“But Egypt only follows the approved 1899’s agreement,” Salamah added, explaining that accordingly, “Bir al Tawi” is Sudanese and Halayeb and Shalatin is Egyptian.
Nasif is not the first to declare this land as a state. Jeremiah Heaton, an American citizen, made the same declaration in the past regarding this area and introduced himself as the state’s emperor, according to his interview with BBC in 2014.
Neither Egypt nor Sudan has issued an official statement on the topic yet.
Photo credit: The state’s official Facebook page
