The diplomacy of the United Arab Emirates yesterday denied a press report that weapons were found in an aircraft that was supposed to be carrying humanitarian aid intended for refugees from Sudan, stressing the country’s neutrality in the war.

Since April 15, armed conflict has been raging in Sudan between the army, led by General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), the paramilitaries led by General Mohamed Hamdan Daglo.

In a statement she made public, the director of communications of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Emirates, Afra Al Hameli, assured that her country does not “supply arms and ammunition to any of the warring parties in brother Sudan”.

Ms Hameli added that the UAE “does not take sides in the current conflict that is shaking Sudan, seeks to end it and calls for respect for the national sovereignty” of the warring state.

Since the outbreak of the conflict, the UAE has been “calling for de-escalation, ceasefire and dialogue”, he added.

Last Thursday, the American newspaper Wall Street Journal reported, citing Ugandan officials, that on June 2 weapons were found on board an aircraft that was supposed to be carrying humanitarian aid from the UAE to Sudanese refugees in Chad.

“Instead of the food and medical supplies listed on the plane’s cargo manifest, Ugandan officials said they found dozens of plastic boxes in the cargo hold filled with ammunition, assault rifles and other small arms,” ​​according to the Journal report.

However, the UAE aircraft, which made a stopover in Entebbe (Uganda), “was given permission to continue its journey to Amjaras International Airport in eastern Chad”, according to the same sources.

And then officials “were ordered by their superiors to stop inspecting Emirati aircraft,” according to the report.

According to analysts, the warring sides in Sudan are backed by foreign countries, with neighboring Egypt supporting General Burhan and the UAE his rival.

The war has claimed the lives of nearly 4,000 people since mid-April, according to the latest estimate by the non-governmental organization ACLED — a tally that is undoubtedly an underestimate, given the chaos, crossfire and communications that have been disrupted for much of the country. Another four million plus Sudanese have been forced from their homes, have become internally displaced and refugees.