Sudan summons Ethiopia envoy over downed plane claims

Sudan summoned Addis Ababa's ambassador to Khartoum on Tuesday about a statement he made confirming that Ethiopia shot down a plane that had come from Sudanese airspace.

"With regards to the plane that passed through Sudanese airspace to Ethiopian airspace and was brought down by the Ethiopian army there is no doubt that the news is true," ambassador Yibeltal Aemero Alemu had told reporters in Sudan on Monday about resumed hostilities in northern Ethiopia.

The envoy was summoned to the foreign ministry on Tuesday.

A statement said Fadl Abdallah Fadl, Sudan's Director-General of African Affairs, called the ambassador's statements "unfounded allegations" and "in violation of diplomatic custom", especially as the neighbouring countries "seek to strengthen relations".

Ethiopia's air force said last week it had shot down a plane carrying weapons for the rebel Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF) that had encroached on the country's airspace via Sudan.

The date of the incident, the type of aircraft and how it was downed were not detailed in the original statement or by Ambassador Alemu on Monday.

The claim was made as fighting between the Tigrayan rebels and government forces erupted in northern Ethiopia for the first time in five months, shattering a truce and dealing a blow to hopes for peace talks to end the 21-month conflict.