Sudanese and Eritrean presidents discuss border clashes

Last week's outbreak of fighting on the border between Sudan and Eritrea, just days after Presidents al-Bashir and Isayas Afewerki signed a reconciliation agreement, was discussed by the two leaders by phone on Tuesday, AFP news agency reported on Tuesday. It quoted Sudanese foreign minister Mustafa Osman Ismail as saying that the leaders had discussed "the need for addressing the tense situation on Sudan's eastern border and commitment to the Doha reconciliation agreement." Khartoum alleged last week that Eritrean forces bombed regions in the eastern state of Kassala and provided refuge for rebel forces of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), despite the reconciliation pact precluding such hostile acts one against the other. Eritrea denied the bombing.