Ethiopia's Abiy refutes allegations of military incursion into Sudan

Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed has denied allegations that the Ethiopian military had invaded the disputed Al Fashaqa region inside the border of neighbouring Sudan and issued a stern warning to anyone trying to incite conflict between the two countries.

Ahmed emphasised on Thursday that opportunists are looking to gain political advantage from the uproar that they are causing among the people of Sudan and Ethiopia.

"These parties with their ill motives are claiming that Ethiopia is mobilising its troops along the borders of Sudan. Ethiopia strongly condemns this false allegation intended to cause conflict between the brotherly peoples of Sudan and Ethiopia," Abiy said.

He said that constructive dialogue between Ethiopia and Sudan will help resolve their boundary dispute.

"We firmly believe in resolving the border issues through dialogue and discussions," he said.

He also reiterated that Ethiopia has no intention of exploiting the crisis in Sudan, as there is a strong sense of brotherhood and good neighbourliness between the two countries.

Al Fashaqa is a fertile strip of land that has long been a source of friction between Addis Ababa and Khartoum.

The region, which lies close to Ethiopia's war-torn northern region of Tigray, has long been cultivated by Ethiopian farmers but is claimed by Sudan.

The dispute has sparked sporadic clashes between the two sides, some fatal.

The rift also feeds into wider tensions over land and water between the neighbours, particularly stoked by Ethiopia's mega-dam on the Blue Nile.

Sudan and Egypt, both downstream countries, have been opposed to the Great Ethiopian Renaissance Dam and pushed for an agreement on the filling of its reservoir and the dam's operations.

READ MORE: Sudan army rules out talks as Türkiye, UN, Arab nations call for Eid truce

Deadly conflict

Some 330 people have been killed since the fighting erupted on Saturday between forces loyal to Sudan's army chief and his deputy, Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, who commands the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces [RSF].

Sudan's army chief General Abdel Fattah al Burhan, received separate phone calls on Thursday from Turkish President Erdogan, Saudi and Qatari foreign ministers, the Egyptian intelligence chief and the US, an army statement reported, calling for a temporary ceasefire. 

The calls come amid efforts to get both the army and RSF to agree to a three-day ceasefire on Eid al Fitr that starts on Friday as explosions and gunfire resounded in Sudan's capital for the sixth straight night.

As battles raged, Burhan dismissed any prospects for negotiations with Dagalo, telling Al Jazeera television that he saw no option but "decisive military" action.

The recent fighting in the capital Khartoum has raised concerns among neighbouring countries, particularly Ethiopia, which has its own boundary dispute with Sudan.

READ MORE: UN chief calls for Sudan ceasefire over Eid al Fitr