Sudan denies claims of connection between protests, Saudi Arabia

The Foreign Ministry denied on Friday accusations of connection between Saudi Arabia and protests taking place in Sudan, sparked after decision to increase fuel prices on September 23. In a statement, the ministry was quoted by Sudanese News Agency (SUNA) as saying that reports and comments in various newspapers and websites about Sudanese relation and the Arabian Gulf countries, most notably Saudi Arabia, were inaccurate and only hurts strong ties between the two countries. The statement noted that among such accusations were published by Sudanese leading officials in social websites, while another accusation came from a well-known columnist claiming that one of the Gulf States rejected to receive the Sudanese foreign minister. The statement did not name the officials or the columnist. The statement explained that the minister's schedule did not include visit to any gulf country, and utterly rejected all attempts to disrupt relations between the two sides. The ministry asserted that its relations with the all Gulf States remain strong and based on strong brotherly bonding relations, the statement added.