Egypt supports Sudan in dispute with South

Egypt has announced its unconditional support for Sudan in its demand for South Sudan's withdrawal from the oil-rich Heglig province. Cairo expressed its surprise at “the aggressive behaviour taken by the South Sudan at a time when the two countries were planning to put an end to all their differences through dialogue”. Cairo announced its backing for Khartoum in a phone call between the two foreign ministers of Egypt and Sudan, where Cairo promised to use its regional and international weight to preserve Sudan’s independence and borders. In a related matter, the spokesman for Sudan's foreign ministry, ambassador Obaid Murawah, stated that the ministry had started a move to inform the world of Southern aggression. The foreign minister will deliver messages from president Omar al-Bashir to the states of South Africa, Namibia, Mozambique and Lesotho. It is expected that the secretary-general of the United Nations, Ban Ki-moon, will visit Juba in order to stop escalation between Khartoum and Juba. South president Salva Kiir said before his country’s parliament that he rejected the UN chief's request to withdraw from Heglig and said he would also move into Abii. In Khartoum, the Sudanese parliament is about to declare the South an "enemy state". MPs have submitted a recommendation to the security and defence committees in parliament for this specific purpose.