Egypt president to help mediate on crisis in neighbouring Sudan

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi on Monday said his administration was communicating with the warring sides in Sudan in an effort to stop the fighting and start negotiations aimed at restoring stability in the neighbouring country.

Speaking at a meeting with Egypt’s Supreme Council of the Armed Forces, the president added that he and his counterpart from South Sudan were both ready to "play a mediation role."

"If I had a message to deliver, and I have said that to President Salva Kiir (of South Sudan), we are both ready to play a mediation role between our brothers in Sudan in order to reach a truce between the brothers and this is still going on and we have endless calls between the Sudanese armed forces and the Rapid Support Forces, we are in constant contact with them to encourage them to cease fire and end the bloodshed of the Sudanese and reaching negotiations that leads to restoring stability once again," said President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi.

The power struggle in Sudan pits General Abdel-Fattah Burhan, the commander of the armed forces, against his former ally, General Mohammed Hamdan Dagalo, who heads the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), a paramilitary group.

El-Sissi also said Egypt was in contact with the RSF in order to secure the release of a number of Egyptian troops who were captured in Sudan.

The president insisted that the soldiers had been taking part in joint exercises, and were not deployed to Sudan "to side with anyone or to support a side against another."