Sudan, Ethiopia Trade Accusations in Escalating Border Conflict

Ethiopians who fled the ongoing fighting in Tigray region, carry their belongings on the Sudan-Ethiopia border in Hamdayet village in eastern Kassala state, Sudan. (Reuters file photo)
Ethiopians who fled the ongoing fighting in Tigray region, carry their belongings on the Sudan-Ethiopia border in Hamdayet village in eastern Kassala state, Sudan. (Reuters file photo)
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Sudan, Ethiopia Trade Accusations in Escalating Border Conflict

Ethiopians who fled the ongoing fighting in Tigray region, carry their belongings on the Sudan-Ethiopia border in Hamdayet village in eastern Kassala state, Sudan. (Reuters file photo)
Ethiopians who fled the ongoing fighting in Tigray region, carry their belongings on the Sudan-Ethiopia border in Hamdayet village in eastern Kassala state, Sudan. (Reuters file photo)

Sudan on Saturday accused Ethiopia of an "unforgivable insult" in its sharpest statement since a decades-old border dispute flared late last year.

Clashes erupted between Sudanese and Ethiopian forces over Al-Fashqa, an area of fertile land settled by Ethiopian farmers that Sudan says lies on its side of a border demarcated at the start of the 20th century, which Ethiopia rejects.

In a statement on Thursday, Ethiopia's foreign ministry said it believes "the conflict being trumpeted by the Sudanese government's military wing could only serve the interests of a third party at the expense of the Sudanese people."

Sudan's foreign ministry responded on Saturday by saying "slander towards Sudan and accusation of being an agent for other parties is a grave and unforgivable insult."

"What the Ethiopian foreign ministry cannot deny is the third party whose troops entered with Ethiopian troops trespassing on Sudanese land."

Earlier this week, Sudan accused Ethiopian troops of crossing the border after a similar act by Ethiopian aircraft last month, both of which Ethiopia denied, Reuters reported.

Ethiopia on Thursday reiterated its accusation that Sudan had invaded in early November, attacked and displaced Ethiopians and took control of vacated military camps.

In its statement, Sudan said that Ethiopia had affirmed the 1903 border agreement several times, most recently in 2013.

It accused Ethiopia's foreign ministry of "exploiting (the border issue) for personal interests and for the specific interests of a certain group."

Both countries called on each other to pursue legal means to resolve the border issues.

An African Union mediator arrived in Khartoum on Thursday to discuss the conflict, as well as the ongoing negotiations between Sudan, Egypt, and Ethiopia over the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam.



Spain Cancels Contract for Anti-tank Missiles Built by Israeli Subsidiary

 Israeli soldiers fire a mortar towards Gaza from their position near the border, as seen from Israel, June 2, 2025. (Reuters)
Israeli soldiers fire a mortar towards Gaza from their position near the border, as seen from Israel, June 2, 2025. (Reuters)
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Spain Cancels Contract for Anti-tank Missiles Built by Israeli Subsidiary

 Israeli soldiers fire a mortar towards Gaza from their position near the border, as seen from Israel, June 2, 2025. (Reuters)
Israeli soldiers fire a mortar towards Gaza from their position near the border, as seen from Israel, June 2, 2025. (Reuters)

Spain has cancelled a deal for anti-tank missile systems that were to be manufactured in Madrid by a subsidiary of an Israeli company, in a bid to move away from Israeli military technology, the Defense Ministry said Tuesday.

The decision will affect the license for 168 SPIKE LR2 anti-tank missile systems with an estimated value of 285 million euros ($325 million). The systems would have been developed in Spain by Pap Tecnos, a Madrid-based subsidiary of Israel’s Rafael Advanced Defense Systems, according to local press.

“The goal is clear...a total disconnection from Israeli technology,” government spokesperson Pilar Alegría told reporters, adding the government is studying “the effects of the cancellation.”

Israel's Defense Ministry referred questions on the decision to Rafael, which told Associated Press it wasn't aware of the cancellation. Pap Tecnos, located on the outskirts of Madrid, did not comment.

Spain approved the deal on Oct. 3, 2023, four days before an assault led by Hamas on southern Israel that sparked a devastating war in Gaza. Authorities argued at the time that the systems used by the Spanish forces were obsolete and should be replaced for up-to-date versions like those used by allied armies.

Spain's leftist government says it stopped exporting arms to Israel as of Oct. 2, 2023, but there were reports some shipments slipped through.

United States late last year opened an investigation into whether NATO ally Spain denied port entry to at least three cargo vessels reportedly transporting US weapons to Israel.

Spain formally recognized a Palestinian state in May 2024 in a coordinated effort with Norway and Ireland. A month later, Spain became the first European country to ask the top United Nations court, the International Court of Justice, permission to join a case mounted by South Africa that accuses Israel of genocide in Gaza. Israel strongly denies the charge.