Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed has rejected allegations that Ethiopian troops have entered al-Fashaga, Sudan— the fertile borderland where the two countries have a long territorial dispute.
On 19 April 2023, the Arabic daily Al-Sudani published a damning report that accused Ethiopia of launching an attack on the al-Fashaga region on Wednesday.
According to the report, the attack was launched by “forces of the Amhara region” who believed “the opportunity was ripe for them to recover the al-Fashaga,” in the midst of Sudan’s ongoing civil war.
أثيوبيا تحذر الجهات التي تعمل في التحريض والوقيعة بينها وبين السودان الشقيق pic.twitter.com/1fg67a5NKe
— Abiy Ahmed Ali 🇪🇹 (@AbiyAhmedAli) April 20, 2023
In a written statement, Ethiopia’s Prime Minister, Abiy Ahmed, rejected the allegations that Ethiopian troops have entered Sudanese territory.
“There are some who seek to achieve their inferior political objectives by spreading false allegations at a time when Sudan and Ethiopia are facing enormous challenges. It is very unfortunate that they claim Ethiopia has deployed its forces into Sudanese territory. We strongly condemn these allegations, which are aimed at distorting the good neighborly relations between Ethiopia and Sudan,” the statement said.
Prime Mnsiter Abiy Ahmed emphasized Ethiopia is confident “the brotherly people of Sudan will not trust these false allegations.”
He further indicated that the border dispute between Sudan and Ethiopia will be resolved through dialogue and negotiation.
“We do not want to exploit the current situation in Sudan,” Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed stated in his statement.
The conflict in Sudan which pits the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) headed by General Abdul Abdel Fattah al-Burhan against the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) led by Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo is in its sixth day.
At least 350 people have been killed in the fighting so far.