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18 May 2009 Sudan has accused its neighbour Chad
of launching two bombing raids on its territory,
describing the attacks as "an act of war".
The accusation on Friday comes a week after Chad said
Sudan had sent armed groups across its border, raising
fears of the collapse of a recent peace deal.
"They attacked. They bombed and there were
casualties," Ali Youssef Ahmed, the head of protocol
at Sudan's foreign ministry, said.
"This was an act of war from Chad. The Sudanese
leadership and the Sudanese army are assessing the
situation. Sudan has the right to defend its
territory."
Ahmed declined to comment on whether Sudan planned to
retaliate, saying: "We are considering all options."
Response
Chad late on Friday hit back at Sudanese accusations
saying Khartoum was "the robber who cries thief".
Mahamat Hissene, a government spokesman, told
reporters that Chad "is surprised to learn that the
regime in Khartoum is protesting against action by the
Chadian air force on Sudanese territory.
Hissene said that any confrontations would be "simply
the consequence of the attack on Chad organised by
Sudan, using mercenaries armed, trained, financed and
directed by satellite by the Khartoum regime".
Both countries have regularly accused each other of
backing fighters bent on overthrowing their respective
governments.
Ahmed said Sudan's foreign ministry had called in
Chad's ambassador to demand an explanation for the two
sorties and had informed the Khartoum-based
ambassadors of the five permanent members of the UN
Security Council.
Three warplanes
"Three warplanes have crossed the borders to an area
south of El Geneina [the capital of Sudan's West
Darfur] which is 60km inside Sudanese territory,"
Ahmed said earlier on Friday.
"It happened at 10.30am and 1.30pm ... It is a
violation of our territorial sovereignty. Sudan is in
a position to defend its territory," he said.
Chad accused Sudan of backing an armed incursion into
its territory last week, after the two countries had
signed a pact in Doha, Qatar, in which they had agreed
to normalise relations and reject any support for
rebel groups hostile to either of them.
Chad said it had stopped the advance, after clashes
that killed 125 fighters.
Sudan denied involvement in the raid, saying it was a
confrontation between Chad's government and
"opposition groups".
Chad and Sudan resumed shaky diplomatic ties in
November after cutting them in May 2008.
Sudan has accused Idriss Deby, the president of Chad,
of being involved in an attack on the Sudanese capital
by Darfur rebels on May 11, 2008. -- Agencies
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