Egypt denies accusation of South Sudan bombing raid

Reuters
This file photo taken on September 18, 2015 shows South Sudan's former Vice President and South Sudanese rebel leader Riek Machar talking during a press conference in Khartoum. (AFP)

JUBA: South Sudan rebels accused Egypt on Saturday of carrying out bombing raids against their positions, drawing an immediate denial from Cairo, and warned of the risk of a regional war.
It was the first time either side had alleged Egyptian involvement in South Sudan’s festering conflict, which pits President Salva Kiir’s military against forces loyal to his former vice president, Riek Machar.
The Egyptian air force on Friday dropped “more than nine bombs and explosions on the gallant SPLA-IO positions” near the northern village of Kaka, a rebel statement said, using an acronym for the rebel force.
Egyptian Foreign Ministry spokesman Ahmed Abu Zeid denied the alleged airstrikes, saying: “Egypt does not interfere in the internal affairs of other countries.”
South Sudan presidential spokesman Ateny Wek Ateny also denied Egypt had conducted any bombings in the country, describing the allegations as “nonsense.”
“Those small packets of rebels are ... operating inside our population and we cannot bomb our own population,” he said.
War erupted in South Sudan in December 2013 after a political disagreement between Kiir and Machar exploded into military confrontation.