Sudan Accuses Ethiopian Air Force of Violating Country’s Airspace, Foreign Ministry Says

CAIRO, January 13 (Sputnik) - The Sudanese Foreign Ministry said on Wednesday that an Ethiopian military aircraft violated the country’s airspace and warned of possible "disastrous consequences" in the border region.

"An Ethiopian military plane violated the Sudanese border, which could lead to disastrous consequences and increase tensions in the border region," the ministry tweeted.

Khartoum condemned the incident and called on Addis Ababa to not repeat such hostile actions in the future as they may undermine the bilateral relations of the two neighboring countries and destabilize the Horn of Africa region.

Sudan-Ethiopia border rivalry goes back decades and is centered around the area known as al-Fashaga, where Sudan’s Gedaref state meets with the Amhara region of Ethiopia. The tensions were triggered by mass settlements of Ethiopian peasants on Sudan’s territory, and the situation is further complicated by the presence of several militias in Ethiopia’s northwestern provinces.

Tensions between the two countries escalated in recent months. In December, four Sudanese soldiers were killed and a dozen more got injured in a fight with Ethiopian militias along the border. Khartoum claims that the Ethiopian military supports militias, a claim denied by Addis Ababa. Meanwhile, Ethiopia accuses Sudan of "encroaching" on its borders.