SUDANESE Foreign Minister Mustafa Osman Ismail urged Eritrea and Ethiopia on Sunday to show “self-restraint” in their border conflict, saying he fears its effects will spread across east Africa. “The effects of this war will not be confined to the two states, but will spread to affect neighbouring countries including Sudan,” he said. He called on the sides to show “self-restraint and concentrate on attempts to solve the conflict peacefully.” “The war is now [moving] in the direction of the Sudanese border and is damaging hope and stability in the region,” Ismail said, adding that Sudan will continue contacts with the two sides to urge them to stop fighting and return to the negotiating table. Ethiopia claimed major victories on Saturday in its border battles with Eritrea, while the Eritrean army dismissed the claims and said it had killed or wounded more than 25000 Ethiopian soldiers in three days of heavy fighting.