Sudan: Talks continue with Ethiopia on border tension

By Bahram Abdel-Menim

KHARTOUM, Sudan (AA) - Sudan's army said on Friday that diplomatic contacts with Ethiopia to contain border tensions were ongoing.

The Sudan's army spokesman, General Amer Mohamed al-Hassan, said in a statement that one Sudanese officer had been killed and seven other soldiers injured due to attacks launched by Ethiopian militias backed by the Ethiopian army.

"We decided to give chance for diplomacy in Khartoum and Addis Abbas to calm the situation on the border strip before it turns into an all-out war between the two countries," said al-Hassan.

He added that the recent attacks on Sudanese territory by the Ethiopian army and militias violated previous agreements between the two countries.

Al-Hassan called on Ethiopia to abide by its agreements with Sudan on their mutual boundaries, along with deployments of official forces on either side of the border.

On Thursday, a Sudanese army officer and a child were killed and seven other soldiers were injured as a result of attacks by Ethiopian militias in the border areas in the past two days.

Ethiopia has yet to comment on the accusations.

Sudan and Ethiopia have been engaged in continuous talks over the demarcation of the borders between the two countries.

* Ahmed Asmar contributed to this report from Ankara