Sudan and Ethiopia have closed each other’s consulates and expelled diplomatic staff amid accusations that the neighboring countries are supporting armed groups fighting their respective governments.
Ethiopia ordered the closure of Sudan’s consulate in the western border city of Assosa and gave six diplomats 48 hours to leave, according to media reports on Wednesday. Sudan responded by closing Ethiopia’s consulate in its eastern city of Gedaref and ordering its staff out. Neither foreign ministry publicly explained the decisions.
Sudanese presidential adviser Amjad Farid said his government remained committed to defending its territory, Reuters reported. “Nevertheless, it is making every possible effort to avoid an open war with Ethiopia,” he said.
On Sunday, the Sudanese Foreign Ministry said it had lodged complaints with the UN Security Council and the African Union’s Peace and Security Council, accusing Ethiopia of allowing the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) to launch drone attacks from its territory.
“The use of Ethiopian territory by the terrorist militia (RSF) to target Sudanese territory is considered a hostile act,” Sudan’s Foreign Ministry said.
A report released by Sudan’s army-led Transitional Sovereignty Council alleged that 70 attacks between February 15 and October 27 involved 187 one-way attack drones launched from Ethiopia. It said the strikes killed or wounded 484 civilians and killed 176 soldiers, targeting hospitals, residential areas and electricity and fuel facilities.
Addis Ababa has denied supporting the RSF or allowing drone attacks from its territory. In a May 5 statement, its Foreign Ministry dismissed Sudanese accusations as “baseless” and called for an immediate humanitarian truce, a sustained ceasefire and civilian-led dialogue to restore civilian rule in Sudan.
Sudan descended into chaos in April 2023 when fighting erupted between the national army, the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF), and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF). The conflict followed months of tension between their commanders, Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, known as Hemedti, over a planned transition to civilian rule. What began in the capital, Khartoum, as a power struggle has devastated the country, killing tens of thousands, displacing millions, and pushing parts of Sudan into famine.
Regional and international peace efforts, including African Union mediation and Saudi-US talks in Jeddah, have repeatedly stalled. In September 2025, the Quad group – the US, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and the United Arab Emirates – proposed a three-month humanitarian truce leading to a permanent ceasefire and a civilian-led political transition. Burhan rejected a subsequent US-led proposal that November, arguing it would dismantle state security institutions while leaving the RSF in place. The paramilitaries said they accepted the truce.
The UAE’s involvement has deepened mistrust of mediation. Sudan’s army-backed government severed diplomatic ties with Abu Dhabi in May 2025, accusing it of supporting the RSF. The UAE denies supplying weapons to the paramilitaries. Relations with Washington deteriorated further in September 2026 after the US questioned both factions’ legitimacy. Sudan rejected the remarks and called for peace efforts free from foreign dictates.
Meanwhile, rival administrations have entrenched Sudan’s divisions. Burhan’s government returned to Khartoum in January 2026 after the army recaptured the capital, having operated from Port Sudan during the fighting. In July 2025, the RSF-aligned TASIS coalition announced a rival government based in Nyala, Darfur, with Dagalo heading its governing council. The UN Security Council and African Union rejected the move.
UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator Denise Brown said on Tuesday that intensifying drone attacks in Sudan were disrupting electricity, water and fuel supplies. She said a power outage had halted dialysis for 25 patients at a hospital outside Khartoum, while fuel shortages had stranded hundreds of aid trucks.
The expulsions come amid deteriorating regional relations. Ethiopia expelled ten Eritrean diplomats and closed its embassy in Asmara on October 1, prompting Eritrea to sever diplomatic ties. Addis Ababa also expelled an Egyptian diplomat that day. Ethiopia has accused Eritrea, Egypt, and Sudan of supporting an alliance led by the Tigray People’s Liberation Front, which joined six other armed groups seeking to overthrow Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s government. All three countries deny the allegations.
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