Sudan says it kills 70 and destroys 75 tanks, Ugandans deny intervention

Spokesman for the Sudanese armed forces Lt. Gen. Abdul Rahman Serr al-Khitm announced that Sudanese forces killed more than 70 Ugandan soldiers and destroyed 75 tanks, three armored vehicles and several lorries during battles that took place in southern Sudan.

The Sudanese daily "al-Anba"' on Wednesday quoted Serr al-Khitm as saying that the Sudanese army has full control in all battles taking place with the rebels in southern Sudan. He added that the Ugandan troops participate along with Sudanese rebels in these battles. He added that Eritrea and Rwanda support Uganda in its campaign against Sudan.

Meanwhile, the Sudanese daily Akhbar al-Youm" quoted the ruler of Kasla province in East Sudan Mahmoud Ibrahim Hamid as saying that shells were launched from inside the territories of Eritrea against areas in Sudan. The paper added that the bombardment resulted in the death of one person and wounded eight. Hamid said that in another round of shelling against a refugee camp monitored by the UN, an employee of the Sudanese Red Crescent Society was wounded.

Meanwhile, the Ugandan army denied the Sudanese claims that some 70 of its soldiers were killed recently in southern Sudan. It once again stressed that its troops did not enter Sudanese territories.

A spokesman for the Ugandan army in Kampala said, "It is not possible that 70 soldiers from the Ugandan army have been killed in confrontations with the government's forces, because we do not have any presence there." He continued, "We hope that such statements made by the Sudanese officials will not be invitations to fight us, because any of our two sides will not benefit from such a fight."

On September 16, Khartoum announced that Sudanese government forces killed 50 soldiers from the rebels in southern Sudan and Ugandan soldiers.