Sudan rejects Ethiopia’s claims of backing Tigray forces

Sudan's military has rejected allegations made by Ethiopia's army commander that Khartoum is backing armed groups fighting its troops in the country's north, calling the accusations "baseless". Ethiopian army chief Field Marshal Birhanu Jula on Sunday accused Sudan, Egypt and Eritrea of supporting forces battling the federal government, as fighting escalated in the northern Tigray state.

The Sudanese armed forces said in a statement late Sunday that they "categorically reject these allegations and consider them baseless", adding that Sudan was "committed to international law and the principles of good-neighbourly relations".

Tensions have been rising for months between Ethiopia's federal government and authorities in the state, who fought a devastating civil war in 2020-2022. The renewed fighting between the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF) and Ethiopia's federal government has stoked fears of a return to a conflict that killed more than 600,000 people in those years, according to African Union estimates.

Speaking in remarks carried by the Ethiopian military's YouTube channel, Jula said Ethiopia was confronting forces "organised and allied to serve the interests of external forces", before accusing several nations. "Neither Shaebia (Eritrea) nor the TPLF can achieve anything alone, even if they are allied, unless they are backed, supported and supplied by Sudan, Egypt and other external powers," he added.

Egypt and Eritrea have not publicly responded to the allegations. Sudan's military has meanwhile accused Ethiopia of supporting the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), its foe in a war at home that has raged since April 2023.

Khartoum has repeatedly accused Ethiopia of allowing drone attacks to be launched from its territory in coordination with the United Arab Emirates, allegations that both Addis Ababa and Abu Dhabi deny. In May, Ethiopia in turn accused the Sudanese army of backing TPLF-linked "mercenaries", a charge Khartoum denied.