Ethiopia Expels Sudanese Diplomats as Regional Tensions Deepen

November 4, 2026 

Addis Ababa — Ethiopia has ordered six Sudanese diplomatic staff members to leave the country within 48 hours, a senior Ethiopian official told Reuters on Wednesday, further escalating tensions between the two neighbors amid competing allegations of support for armed groups and growing fears of a wider regional conflict.

The reported expulsion comes days after Sudan’s army-aligned government said it had lodged formal complaints against Ethiopia with the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) and the African Union Peace and Security Council (AUPSC), accusing Addis Abeba of allowing the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) to use Ethiopian territory to launch drone attacks against civilian infrastructure in Sudan.

According to Reuters, the six staff members were ordered to leave Sudan’s consulate in Assosa, the administrative center of Benishangul-Gumuz Regional State. The Ethiopian official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter, did not provide a reason for the decision. Reuters said the spokesperson for the Ethiopian prime minister’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The move adds another layer to an increasingly volatile diplomatic standoff in which both governments accuse the other of supporting their adversaries. Sudan alleges that Ethiopia is facilitating RSF operations, while Addis Ababa accuses Khartoum of backing Tigrayan rebels involved in renewed fighting in northern Ethiopia. Both sides deny the allegations against them.

The diplomatic escalation also comes amid Ethiopia’s deteriorating relations with Eritrea. On 1 October, Addis Standard reported that Ethiopia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced the closure of its embassy in Asmara and declared 10 Eritrean diplomats in Addis Abeba persona non grata, ordering them to leave within 48 hours. The Ministry cited what it described as Eritrea’s “direct and indirect acts of hostility and belligerence against Ethiopia,” alleging that the diplomats had engaged in activities threatening national security without publicly specifying the incidents.

The measures against Sudanese diplomats and Eritrean officials underscore the mounting diplomatic pressures facing Addis Ababa as security disputes increasingly intersect across the Horn of Africa. Ethiopia has also accused Egypt and Eritrea of supporting Tigrayan rebels who launched an offensive against government forces in September. Both countries have denied the allegations.

Sudan’s complaints to the UNSC and AUPSC have further internationalized the dispute, raising concerns that the country’s devastating civil war could intersect with Ethiopia’s internal conflicts and existing regional rivalries.

Amjad Farid, a political and foreign affairs adviser to Sudan’s Transitional Sovereignty Council, told Reuters that Khartoum remained committed to defending its territory but was making every effort to avoid an open war with Ethiopia.

Sudan’s war, which erupted in April 2023 between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the RSF, has displaced more than 14 million people, according to UN figures, creating one of the world’s gravest humanitarian crises.

While the reported expulsion does not by itself establish Ethiopia’s response to Sudan’s formal complaints, it signals a further deterioration in relations at a time when diplomatic channels are increasingly strained. With accusations of cross-border military support mounting and tensions involving Eritrea and Egypt also intensifying, the risk is that overlapping conflicts could deepen regional instability beyond the borders of either country.