Sadiq al-Mahdi, the leader of Sudan’s largest opposition party, the National Umma Party, has called for “reconciliation” with Egypt in return for the release of imprisoned Muslim Brotherhood leaders.
Speaking in an interview to Sudan News Agency (SUNA), Mahdi spoke about “the Egyptian government’s position on the Muslim Brotherhood and the relationship between Egypt and a number of countries, including Sudan, Turkey and Qatar.”
The Sudanese opposition leader said he “proposed to the Egyptian president to issue an amnesty for the leaders of the Muslim Brotherhood sentenced to death,” as part of a reconciliation deal with Egypt.
Since the overthrow of Mohamed Morsi, Egypt’s first elected civilian president, in 2013, Egypt has experienced a political crisis and a social polarisation over the president’s ousting.
The Egyptian authorities deny the existence of political detainees, saying that it has an independent judiciary “to try criminal detainees for the commission of acts, including those related to violence,” especially after the overthrow of Morsi.
Tensions between the two countries continue to grow following accusations from Sudan of Egypt’s involvement in its internal conflicts.
Egypt has denied any involvement in the conflicts, but is known to have voted against an arms embargo in South Sudan to which the SPLM/N group is affiliated.
Tensions between Khartoum and Cairo escalated further after Sudan decided to restrict imports of Egyptian farming products earlier this year.
