The presence of some Egyptian soldiers in neighboring Sudan who are not taking part in the present battle has been confirmed by Egypt’s President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi.
He said that they weren’t taking sides in the battle between the army and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) paramilitary organization and that they were only there as part of a cooperative training initiative.
A video that the RSF said showed Egyptian soldiers “turning themselves in” at the Merowe military air base in northern Sudan was released on Twitter on Saturday.
“I hope we retrieve these forces at the fastest earliest time,” Mr Sisi said.
The president made the comments during a meeting with the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces on Monday, part of which was broadcast on the privately owned Extra News TV.
He said Egypt would not interfere in Sudan’s “internal affairs”, but added it could play a role in mediating between factions “to encourage them to cease fire”.