Eritrea dismantles ‘terrorist network’ backed by Sudan
ASMARA, Oct 20 (AFP) — Eritrea has broken up a “terrorist network” backed by Sudan that had plotted to assassinate President Isaias Afwerki and attack civilian targets, the government said in a further escalation of tensions between the two neighbors.
“In the past weeks, Eritrean security forces have apprehended a terrorist network deployed by the Khartoum regime to attack civilian targets and to assassinate President Isaias Afwerki,” said a statement from the Eritrean foreign ministry.
“Lately, the Khartoum regime has been hurling its baseless accusations day-in day-out that Eritrea is deploying troops on the eastern Sudanese border to cover up its naked terrorist plans,” said the statement.
Eritrea’s announcement “clearly exposes the objectives and terrorist plans of the Khartoum regime.”
Afwerki’s chief of staff, Yemane Gebremeskel, said further details more details would be revealed “at the appropriate time.”
“Because of the sensitivity of this information, more details cannot be given right now,” he told AFP by telephone.
The statement is the latest in a month-long series of charges and counter-charges between the two African nations.
On Monday, Asmara accused the Sudanese leadership of plotting to assassinate Afeworki. On Tuesday, Khartoum strongly denied the allegations, which Foreign Minister Mustafa Osman Ismail said were “a prelude to a plan for launching an attack on the Sudan.”
Strained relations between the neighbouring states worsened considerably in 2002, when Khartoum accused Asmara of supporting an offensive by Sudanese rebels on its territory. The states’ border has since been closed.
Sudanese opposition groups, some of them armed movements, occasionally hold meetings in Asmara.
Another cause of tension is Sudan’s good relationship with Ethiopia, which fought a border war with Eritrea between 1998 and 2000. The peace process between Eritrea and Ethiopia has stalled.
Recent months were peppered with further signs of bad blood.
On August 27, a Libyan plane carrying 73 Eritreans being forcibly repatriated was hijacked by some its passengers to Sudan, which granted most of them asylum and convicted 15 to five-year jail terms.
Khartoum refused requests to extradite the convicts unless Eritrea agreed to “hand over Sudanese rebels in Eritrean camps,” while Asmara accused Sudan of “encouraging terrorism.”
In July, Sudan not for the first time accused Eritrea of training two rebel groups which took up arms against Khartoum in the now-devastated western region of Darfur in February 2003.