Chad says surprised as Sudan cuts diplomatic ties

N'DJAMENA (Reuters) - Chad said on Sunday it was surprised at Sudan's decision to break off diplomatic relations over a Darfur rebel attack that reached the outskirts of the Sudanese capital Khartoum.

Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir said in a broadcast on state television that the rebels were supported by Chadian President Idriss Deby, something Chad denied.

"The Chadian government was greatly surprised by the Sudanese government's decision to break off diplomatic relations between the two countries," government spokesman and Communications Minister Mahamat Hissene said in a statement.

"Chad can only acknowledge this hasty decision with regret," he said.

Chad and Sudan have long traded accusations that the other supports rebels operating around Chad's border with Sudan's Darfur region, where experts estimate about 200,000 people have died from disease, hunger and violence over the past five years.

Hissene said he hoped Sudan would re-establish ties between the two countries, which have been tense for years and especially rocky since war broke out in early 2003 between Darfur rebels and the Arab-led government in Khartoum.

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(Writing by Alistair Thomson; Editing by Jon Boyle)