CAIRO — In an interview with Al Arabiya TV in early February, Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir accused the Egyptian regime of supporting Sudanese rebels and opposition movements. Tensions are already high between Cairo and Khartoum, and security concerns prevail over bilateral ties despite Bashir and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi's talk of friendship, economic integration and common interests during their last meeting in Egypt in October 2016.

During the interview, Bashir stressed that although Sudanese-Egyptian relations are good, there are outstanding issues such as the disputed Halayeb-Shalateen Triangle. He added that Sudan knows that the Egyptian intelligence services are supporting Sudanese opposition leaders and harboring them in Egyptian territory.

The accusations did not stop there. On March 7, a number of Sudanese newspapers republished an article that appeared in Assayha daily: “Egyptian intelligence services increase meetings with Sudanese opposition.” The article revealed that Cairo-based figures of Sudanese opposition factions such as the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) attended these meetings. It also alleged that the Egyptian regime is conducting media campaigns accusing Sudan of harboring members of the Muslim Brotherhood. Egyptian newspapers had reported on Jan. 19 that investigations into the terrorist Hasm movement indicated that its members had attended military and intelligence training in Sudan in preparation for returning and carrying out attacks in Egypt.

Egypt expressed no support for former US President Barack Obama’s decision to lift economic sanctions against Sudan. While Egypt has not issued any official statement regarding the US decision, some Sudanese circles believe that Cairo will not support Sudan before the US administration, particularly since reports circulated saying that members of terror groups continue to be trained in Sudan.