ETHIOPIA ACCUSES SUDAN OF OCCUPYING ITS LANDS

Sat 30 January 2021:

The border area has witnessed tension between Ethiopia and Sudan that is still escalating-Getty

Ethiopia has accused its neighbour Sudan on Friday of occupying part of its territory and fighting by proxy for a “third party”.

This was reported by the Ethiopian News Agency (ENA), quoting a member of the Ethio-Sudan Joint Boundary Commission Wuhib Muluneh.

According to Muluneh, Ethiopia: “Feels that reaching a bilateral decision is the best way out of the crisis rather than inviting a third party to interfere.” In an interview with ENA, he stressed: “There are doubts that a third party was behind the Sudanese move, which refers to a proxy war.”

Muluneh added that in light of the long-standing relations between the two countries, the dispute must be resolved peacefully, confirming that reactivating the border mechanisms is the only option to end the recent border crisis between Ethiopia and Sudan.

Muluneh asserted that before the start of any negotiations, the Sudanese army must evacuate the area “occupied” earlier by its troops who attempted to displace Ethiopian farmers, as he put it.

Sudan has not yet commented on the Ethiopian accusations.

Relations between Sudan and Ethiopia have been undergoing escalating tensions for weeks, following the outbreak of armed attacks on the borders of the two countries. Khartoum asserts that the attacks were carried out by Ethiopian militias backed by army forces on Sudanese territory, while Addis Ababa denies the accusations.