May 2, 2017 (KHARTOUM) - A joint Sudanese-Ethiopian force has started patrol operations to stop human trafficking and drug smuggling on the borders between the two countries.
The joint force including military troops and security elements patrolled the common borders and detected human trafficking violations and theft incidents besides excessive cutting of trees at Dinder Biosphere Reserve (DBR) in Sudan.
The DBR is located on the border between Sudan and Ethiopia, 300 miles south-east of Khartoum. It is estimated at about 10,292 square kilometres.
According to the Sudanese-Ethiopian parties, the patrol of the joint force comes in implementation of the outcome of the recent meeting held in Amhara region which recommended the formation of a joint force at borders between Sudan’s Sennar state and Ethiopia’s Amhara region.
Director of the border department at Sennar state and head of the Sudanese side Fadl al-Mawla Mohamed Toum, said the patrol operation aims to prevent border violations during the coming periods, pointing the joint meetings seek to strengthen ties between the two sides.
He pointed that the joint force managed to retrieve 260 head of sheep that were recently stolen at the Ethiopian border and handed it back to its owners.
Last March, senior Sudanese and Ethiopian army officers in Khartoum discussed a number of issues pertaining to border security, ways to prevent and combat human trafficking and migrant smuggling besides the local and regional security threats.
They underscored the importance to promote relations and joint work between the two countries, pointing to several recommendations and understandings on issues of security and sustainable development as well as strategic military cooperation and coordination.
(ST)
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