Sudanese commander says 95% of Fashqa restored, Ethiopian attempts to be decisively thwarted

CAIRO – 9 April 2021: Sudanese military commander Waleed El-Sajjan said the armed forces managed to restore 95 percent of the Al-Fashqa region, saying any Ethiopian aggression will receive a decisive response, Sudanese news agency (SUNA) reported.

Sajjan said the Sudanese troops in the region are highly ready and are fully confident that they defend the Sudanese homeland.

Tensions between Sudan and Ethiopia are growing amid a border dispute over the fertile region on Al-Fashqa.

Earlier this month, Egypt and Sudan conducted joint military exercises.

Tensions on Al-Fashqa have escalated in recent months. In March, Sudan’s transitional cabinet backed a proposal involving the UAE as a mediator in the issue.

Egypt and Sudan are also embroiled in tensions with Ethiopia over the filling of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD).

Rounds of negotiations among the three countries have reached a deadlock several times.

Egypt and Sudan insist that a legally binding agreement on the filling and operation of the dam should be reached before Ethiopia implements the second phase of dam filling.

Ethiopia, on the other hand, reiterated that it would complete filling the dam in July whether an agreement is reached or not.

Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi on Wednesday urged Ethiopia to cooperate with Egypt on the water file, saying “all options are open” in the event of any harm to a single water drop.

“I tell our Ethiopian brothers: we should not reach the point that you mess with a water drop in Egypt, because all options are open,” Sisi said, while inaugurating the secured and smart documents complex.