Saturday, May 30, 2020

Sudanese Army Spokesman Says Ethiopian Militia Killed “a Number of Sudanese Soldiers,” Commander
Less than a week after Sudan and Ethiopia agreed to resume technical talk over Ethiopian Dam, Sudanese army spokesman claims that Ethiopian Militia killed Sudanese soldiers including a military commander. Unclear if the clash is a manufactured one.

Borkena
May 28, 2020

Spokesman of the Sudanese Armed Forces, Brig. Gen. Amir Mohammed Al-Hassan, on Thursday, said “a number of Sudanese soldiers” were killed by what he called “Ethiopian-Army supported militia.”

According to the report by Sudan News Agency (SUNA), which cited the spokesperson, Sudanese army commander Captain Karamadeen is “martyred.” There are also those who were wounded in connection with the incident. The spokesman did not say the number of soldiers wounded and killed. Civilians are among the casualties, SUNA added.

The incident happened on Sunday “when the Ethiopian militia backed up by the Ethiopian Army penetrated the Sudanese territories, at Barakat Norite and Al-Forsan Village, and clashed with the Sudanese forces stationed in the area,” as reported by SUNA.

A spokesman the Sudanese armed force called the incident “aggression” supported the Ethiopian forces.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ethiopia did not say anything regarding the claim by the Spokesman of the Sudanese Armed Forces.

A high-level Sudanese delegation led by Sudan’s Minister for Cabinet Affairs, H.E. Omar Bashir Manis, was in Ethiopia from May 16 to May 18 for a political consultation with Ethiopian authorities. The delegation also met with Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed.

The Ethio-Sudan border issue was among the agenda items discussed between the two parties.  They issued a joint press statement following the completion of the consultation in which they said that the meeting “was held in a cordial and friendly atmosphere reflecting the longstanding fraternal relations between the two countries based on good neighborliness and mutual understanding.”

They are scheduled to meet in Khartoum at the end of June this year.

The reported clash between the Sudanese and Ethiopian forces happened soon barely a week after the Sudanese forces concluded their visit. Some political activists in Ethiopia claim that the skirmish between the two forces along the border is likely to be a proxy one and that Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) might be behind it.  But the claim is unsubstantiated.

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