Sudan seeks to ‘force Egyptians out’ of disputed area

By Adel Abdul-Rahim

KHARTOUM (AA) - Sudan has formed a panel to look into “diplomatic” means of forcing Egyptians out of a disputed border area.

Abdullah al-Sadeq, the head of the Sudanese technical committee for border demarcation, said the panel has met to set the guidelines for its work regarding the disputed Halayeb and Shalateen Triangle.

The meeting also tackled “a roadmap about the region and how to force Egyptians out of the area by diplomacy,” he told the Sudanese Media Center on Sunday.

Al-Sadeq said that Khartoum has documents proving that the disputed triangle is a Sudanese territory.

The statements came shortly after the Sudanese government reportedly threatened to reply to what it described as insults of Sudan’s civilization by foreign media.

Sudanese authorities have criticized the Egyptian media coverage of a recent visit by the mother of Qatar’s Emir to the country.

The Halayeb and Shalateen region has long been a sore spot in bilateral relations between Sudan and Egypt.

The border dispute was revived after Egypt signed an agreement to cede control of two Red Sea islands to Saudi Arabia last year.

Though annulled by an Egyptian court in January, Sudan called for similar negotiations to take place on the Halayeb Triangle. Cairo has responded that the triangle is an Egyptian territory.

In January, Khartoum renewed a complaint with the UN Security Council against Egypt over the disputed region.