Sudanese army says personnel killed in Ethiopian militias’ attack in Fashqa area

CAIRO - 27 November 2021: The Sudanese army said some of its personnel were killed in an attack by militias and army groups belonging to the Ethiopian military in Al-Fashqa area on the border between the two countries.

In a statement on Saturday, Sudan’s military said forces were assaulted by the militias that sought to intimidate farmers, sabotage the harvest season and carried out an incursion into the Sudanese lands.

“Our forces bravely repelled the attack and inflected heavy losses on them in terms of lives and equipment,” the statement read, affirming that the forces will continue to defend the Sudanese lands.

Media reports said the clashes claimed the lives of two Sudanese officers.

In September, the Sudanese army also announced repelling an attempted incursion by Ethiopian troops in Al-Fashqa.

The fertile farmland of Al-Fashqa has been the focus of tensions between Sudan and Ethiopia, which have escalated since last year in coincidence with the outbreak of a conflict in Ethiopia’s Tigray.

The Tigray conflict between the Ethiopian forces and rebel forces, especially the TPLF, has caused tens of thousands of refugees in the area to flee to Sudan last year.