Sudan’s PM, Eritrean Officials Discuss Tigray Conflict

Abdallah Hamdok receives Eritrea's FM Osman Saleh and Presidential adviser Yemane Gebreab (unseen) on 29 July 2021 (ST photo)

July 30, 2021 (KHARTOUM) - Sudanese Prime Minister Abdallah Hamdok received a message from Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki on the 8-month armed conflict in the Tigray region of Ethiopia.

On Thursday evening, Osman Saleh Eritrean Minister of Foreign Affairs and Presidential Advisor Yemane Gebreab delivered a verbal message to Hamdok from Afwerki, according to a statement released by his cabinet.

The statement said that the Eritrean leader responded to a message on the bloody conflict in Tigray from Hamdok who is also the chairman of the East African bloc, IGAD.

In a recent message to a number of IGAD and African leaders, the Sudanese premier stressed the need "to reach peaceful and political solutions in Ethiopia that ensures the unity of Ethiopia and meets the aspiration of the Ethiopian people," said the statement.

He further urged to prioritize addressing humanitarian issues.

Following the start of fighting in Tigray last year, Hamdok proposed to mediate between the government and the TPLF but Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed rejected the offer.

In a statement released in Asmara, the information ministry stated that the two sides had "frank and extensive discussions" and agreed on the need for a regional effort to overcome the "internal and external challenges".

For its part, the Ethiopian foreign ministry said that its nationals living in Sudan rejected "undue external pressures on the government of Ethiopia and (...) meddling in the internal affairs of the country".

Speaking to a gathering with Ethiopians in Sudan inside the embassy, Ethiopian Ambassador to Khartoum Yibeltal Aemero called to condemn the TPLF "for its atrocious acts"

"Ethiopia would win the just war against the racist TPLF and ensure the survival and wellbeing of the state," Aemero further said.