Sudan threatens another border closure with South Sudan

Sudan has issued a fresh threat that it would close its border with its southern neighbour, South Sudan. Khartoum accuses Juba of supporting a rebel group opposed to its regime.

The threat comes barely two months after the president Omar al-Bashir ordered the reopening of the border with South Sudan.

“If the Government of South Sudan does not end its support for the insurgents, we could take measures to ensure the security of our country and even to look again at the closure of the border with the Sudan in the south,” Ibrahim Mahmoud, a senior adviser to the Sudanese president told reporters.

Relations between the two Sudans have been strained since the south seceded in July 2011.

South Sudan became an independent state after a peace agreement brought an end to a long and devastating civil war.

A Sudanese top official has hinted that Khartoum could also remove the special status of some 200,000 South Sudanese.

South Sudanese living in Sudan do not have refugee status and enjoy the same rights as Sudanese citizens.

The statements come at a time when the African Union is coordinating discussions between the two states.