Sudan summons British ambassador over newspaper interview

Khartoum (AFP) - Sudan's foreign ministry said it had summoned the British ambassador in Khartoum on Thursday over its "deep dissatisfaction" about an interview he gave to a local newspaper this week.

The ministry summoned Michael Aron on Thursday afternoon over comments that it said depicted Sudan's foreign debts and the situation in the western Darfur region "in a negative way".

Aron arrived in Sudan in mid-August and gave an interview to the political daily Al-Mijhar al-Siyasi that was published on Monday, in which he discussed Sudan's foreign debts and the situation in Darfur among other topics.

The ministry said in a statement Aron had "expressed his deep regret and apologised for the comments attributed to him".

But a spokesman for the British embassy in Khartoum said: "We were clear that while our comments were not intended to cause offence, Sudan is currently facing some critical challenges".

The spokesman added that Britain "looks forward to working with the government and people of Sudan towards the peaceful resolution of its problems".

Darfur has been wracked by conflict since 2003 when ethnic insurgents mounted a rebellion against the Arab-dominated Khartoum government, complaining of marginalisation.

The United Nations says more than 300,000 people have been killed and some 2.5 million displaced in the fighting, although Khartoum puts the death toll around 10,000.