Ethiopia has accused Sudanese troops of killing “many civilians” in recent land disputes on the border of nations.
Tensions between the two countries have risen since the conflict erupted in Ethiopia’s northern region, the Tigray, on November 4, and several deadly clashes broke out on agricultural fertile land in the Al-Fashqa area. which is on the border. The dispute runs the risk of attracting a third nation to a regional conflict that has already involved troops from neighboring Eritrea.
Ethiopian authorities have noted Sudanese military forces carrying out organized attacks with heavy machine guns and armored convoys at its border, Dina Mufti, a spokeswoman for Ethiopia’s foreign ministry, told reporters on Tuesday. Ethiopian farmers in the region have been looted, while “many civilians have been killed and injured,” he said.
Sudanese Foreign Minister Omar Qamar al-Din did not respond to requests for comment and calls to the North African nation’s Ministry of Information and the Sudanese army went unanswered.
Al-Din said last week that the Sudanese army has taken control of most of the disputed land in the Al-Fashqa area. He downplayed the prospect of escalating conflict, saying the government will use diplomatic channels to resolve the dispute.
The two sides met last month to discuss the border issue, but did not move forward.
Amhara Militia
Foreign diplomats and Sudanese officials who have been following the talks said that while Sudanese troops moved to the Al-Fashqa area after Ethiopian federal troops left to help the conflict in Tigray, numerous militia groups Ethiopian Amhara have mobilized in the area.
The state of Amhara, whose fighters supported the Ethiopian federal army’s incursion into Tigray, is claiming ownership of parts of al-Fashqa, including areas within Sudanese territory.
Amhara militias “claim renewed aggression at the border that could lead to further provocations,” said Cameron Hudson, a senior member of the Central Council of Africa’s Atlantic Council. “If left unchecked, it represents the kind of ‘low probability and high impact’ scenario that could have devastating and far-reaching consequences.”
Sudan says the border area around al-Fashqa was demarcated under colonial-era treaties dating back to 1902, placing the land firmly within its international borders. Khartoum has historically allowed Amhara farmers to do business and live on fertile land as long as they pay taxes and operate under Sudanese law, and in turn Ethiopia has recognized the land as Sudanese.
Foreign fighters
The Sudanese border has already been destabilized by fighting in Tigray. The UN said on Tuesday that dozens of refugees continue to arrive in Sudan due to persistent violence in the area.
“Some 800 people crossed from the Tigray region in Ethiopia to eastern Sudan in the first days of the new year alone,” said Andrej Mahecic, a spokesman for the UN refugee agency in Geneva. “The latest arrivals explain that they have been caught in the conflict and that they have been victims of various armed groups.”
Despite previous denials, Ethiopian officials have begun recognizing the presence of Eritrean troops in Tigray. Speaking to the Tigray regional station, which is now effectively controlled by the Abyy administration, Ethiopian army commander-in-chief Belay Seyoum said last week that Eritrean troops had entered Ethiopia “without to be invited ”while federal forces were attacked by Tigrinya troops.
“We feel bad that this should happen, “he said.” We can solve our internal problems for ourselves. We are able to do it. “
– With the assistance of Samuel Gebre
(Updates with comments from Ethiopian UN officials in the second paragraph after the Foreign Fighters subtitle)