Egyptian soldiers on the territory of Sudan do not support any side of the conflict. They are only carrying out tasks related to the training of military manpower. Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi stated this on Tuesday.
"[Egyptian] forces present in Sudan are there only to train [the Sudanese military], but not to support one side of the conflict at the expense of the other," said el-Sisi, quoted by Sada El Balad TV. The president expressed his hope that the Egyptian servicemen stationed in Sudan "will return home as soon as possible."
According to the Egyptian leader, "what is happening in Sudan is an internal affair of the country, and interference [from outside] must not be allowed, lest it further inflame the conflict." Cairo, el-Sisi added, seeks to prevent an escalation of tensions in Sudan. He noted that the Egyptian authorities are "trying to find a solution to stop the bloodshed and maintain stability in Sudan."
Some time ago, the Egyptian president, who is the supreme commander of the country's armed forces, held a meeting of the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces. As indicated by the Al Hadath TV channel, the council "assessed the situation in Sudan," which has a common border with Egypt. The meeting also considered options for "strengthening the southern borders [with Sudan]" and discussed "the situation of Egyptian soldiers on Sudanese territory and ensuring their safe return to their homeland."
According to Al Hadath, Egypt is going to launch its own initiative to resolve the Sudanese conflict, which will be made public before Eid al-Fitr (Uraza Bayram). It comes at the end of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, this year on April 21.
Egyptian military in Sudan
On April 15, the day the armed clashes began in Sudan, one of the warring parties, the Rapid Reaction Force (Special Forces), announced that Egyptian soldiers had been detained at an airfield in the town of Merowe in Sudan's Northern State. The special forces assured Cairo that "the detained Egyptian citizens are safe and will be handed over to their leadership once the security situation is normalized."
The newspaper Asharq Al-Awsat pointed out that one of the reasons for the current conflict might have been the presence of Egyptian Air Force and Egyptian military aircraft at the Merowe airfield, located in the northern state. The publication's sources explained that "tensions between the Sudanese military structures are related to the presence of Egyptian fighter jets at the Merowe airfield." According to them, the command of Sudanese special forces "considered this fact as a threat [to security]" of the country. As Al Hadath previously reported, during the clashes in Merowe, special forces units seized several Russian-made fighter jets at the airfield of that city.
Following reports of captured Egyptians, an Egyptian army spokesman said it was conducting joint exercises with the Sudanese army. "We are following the events in Sudan, the Egyptian forces are conducting joint exercises with their counterparts in Sudan, there is coordination with the relevant authorities to ensure their security," the spokesman said.
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Photo: Defence-Imagery/Pixabay
Based on materials from TASS