Ms Gadaheldam has been an almost permanent fixture on the sides of President Museveni in regional meetings to deal with relations with Sudan under former President Omar-al-Bashir and current military leader Gen Abdel Fatah al-Burhan.

Najwa Gadaheldam, a senior adviser to Sudan's leader, Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, died Wednesday, about 24 hours after the plane that had intended to transport her back to Israel for treatment landed in the Arab country.

Times of Israeli in a lead article titled; 'Israeli MDs fly to enemy Sudan in failed bid to save diplomat behind secret ties', said despite the two countries still being technically at war, Israeli officials went to great length to send "a plane with medical staff and equipment to Sudan in an attempt to save the life of a diplomat sick with Covid-19, who managed the clandestine ties between Jerusalem and Khartoum".

The controversial Uganda link

Ms Gadaheldam was said to have first met President Museveni in Vienna, Austria at the UN conference on water in early 2000s when the relations between Uganda and Sudan were fragile.

Ms Gadaheldam's last 'official' function involving Uganda was said to have been on February 22 in Juba, where she attended a meeting between Lt Gen al-Burhan, the chairman of the Sovereign National Council of Sudan, and Prime Minister Ruhakana Rugunda, who was representing President Museveni at the inauguration of the new government of national unity of South Sudan.