The military official in the Benishangul region in Ethiopia, Seif Engi, said that his forces thwarted an infiltration attempt to disrupt the dam, accusing the intruders of affiliation with the Tigray Liberation Front.

Ethiopia claims that the Tigrayan forces receive Sudanese support, which Khartoum denies.

Following the accusations, a Sudanese official called on Ethiopia on Saturday not to involve his country in its internal conflicts.

The media advisor to the President of the Sovereign Council, Al-Taher Abu Haja, said: “Sudan and its army do not interfere in the internal issues of neighboring Ethiopia, and we call on the Ethiopian leadership to work on resolving its conflicts away from involving Sudan in it.”

He added, “We have followed statements attributed to the Ethiopian army talking about the Sudanese armed forces’ support for armed groups that tried to sabotage the Renaissance Dam. We confirm that this accusation is unfounded.”

Later on Saturday, the Sudanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs demanded, in a statement, Ethiopia “to stop being aggressive in dealing with Sudan, which it has been doing over the past period.”

The ministry called on Ethiopia to “stop repeating allegations that are not supported by reality or logic against Sudan in order to achieve the interests and purposes of specific personalities and groups,” without naming anyone.

Last June, the “Popular Front” forces managed to regain control of the capital of Tigray region, which dealt a severe blow to the Ethiopian government, which last November carried out a military campaign in the region in response to an attack on an army base.

(agencies)