Ethiopia has ordered six Sudanese diplomats to leave the country within 48 hours, an Ethiopian official said on Wednesday, amid escalating tensions between Addis Ababa and Sudan’s military-aligned authorities in Port Sudan over accusations of support for rival armed groups.
The six diplomats, stationed at Sudan’s consulate in the Ethiopian border town of Assosa, were instructed to leave without an official explanation, according to a senior Ethiopian official who spoke to Reuters on condition of anonymity.
The decision follows renewed accusations by Sudan’s military-backed authorities that Ethiopia is allowing the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) to operate from its territory and launch drone attacks against Sudanese infrastructure.
On Sunday, the Port Sudan authorities announced that they had filed complaints with the United Nations Security Council and the African Union Peace and Security Council, accusing Addis Ababa of facilitating RSF operations, including alleged suicide drone strikes on civilian facilities.
Ethiopia has repeatedly denied supporting the RSF.
Relations between the two countries have deteriorated as each accuses the other of interfering in its internal conflicts, raising concerns that the fighting in Sudan and Ethiopia’s northern Tigray region could develop into a wider regional confrontation.
Addis Ababa has accused Sudan, Egypt and Eritrea of supporting Tigrayan armed groups that launched an offensive against Ethiopian government forces in September. All three countries have rejected the allegations.
The Ethiopian prime minister’s office did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the expulsion order.
Amjad Farid, a political and foreign affairs adviser to Sudan’s Transitional Sovereign Council, said the Port Sudan authorities were seeking to avoid direct military confrontation with Ethiopia while reserving the right to defend Sudanese territory.
Sudan’s war, which erupted in April 2023 between the RSF and Sudan’s military, has displaced more than 14 million people, according to United Nations figures, and triggered one of the world’s most severe humanitarian crises.
The latest diplomatic dispute adds to concerns over regional instability, with unresolved security tensions along the Sudan-Ethiopia border threatening to further complicate efforts to contain the two conflicts.
