June 2000 Press Releases

1. Eritrea Calls Upon Ethiopia Once Again to Respond to World Court Case about Illegal Ethiopian Seizure of Eritrean Embassy Residence (June 28, 2000)
2. 150 Eritreans Deported from Ethiopia (June 28, 2000)
3. Ethiopian Army Demolishes the Towns of Tessenei and Guluj (June 21, 2000)
4. ICRC Sponsored Voluntary Repatriation of Ethiopians Will Commence (June 18, 2000)
5. Statement of the Government of Eritrea (June 15, 2000)
   
6. Over 11,000 Ethiopian Soldiers Put Out of Action in the Week-Long Battles on the Assab Front (June 12, 2000)
   
7. Ethiopia's Offensive on the Assab Front Totally Foiled (June 11, 2000)
   
8. Ethiopia Perpetrates Offensives on All Three Fronts (June 10, 2000)
   
9. Ethiopia Launches Large-Scale Offensive on Assab Front (June 9, 2000)
   
10. Crimes Against Humanity Being Committed by the Inhumane Government in Ethiopia (June 9, 2000)
    
11. Town of Tessenei Liberated; Ethiopian Army Suffers Major Defeat(June 6, 2000, 7:00 a.m. LT)
    
12. Ethiopia Must Agree to a Cease-fire and Immediate Redeployment (June 5, 2000)
    
13. Over 3,700 Ethiopian Troops Decimated on Assab Front;
    Large Quantities of Medium and Small Weapons Seized (June 4, 2000, 12:30 p.m. LT)
    
14. Ethiopia Launches Attack on Assab Front (June 3, 2000, 7:00 a.m. LT)
    
15. Ethiopian Troops Demolish Key Buildings in Barentu (June 2, 2000)
    

Eritrea Calls Upon Ethiopia Once Again to Respond to World Court Case about Illegal Ethiopian Seizure of Eritrean Embassy Residence
June 28, 2000

On Wednesday, 28 June 2000, Eritrea repeated its call to Ethiopia to respond to its petition to the International Court of Justice (World Court) documenting Ethiopia's violations of the Eritrean Embassy residence premises in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Eritrea's petitions of February 16, 1999, and February 16, 2000, detailed the forcible entry and ransacking of legally protected Eritrean diplomatic premises by several dozen armed and uniformed Ethiopian security forces. Eritrea's accredited ambassador to the Organization of African Unity was ordered out of Ethiopian on 24 hours notice, leaving Eritrea without representation at the OAU, and all of his personal and diplomatic luggage was searched and seized. Sixteen months later, Ethiopian security forces still remain in illegal physical possession of the Eritrean Embassy residence in Addis Ababa.

Eritrea's call to Ethiopia to respond to the International Court of Justice was occasioned by an allegation made by an Ethiopian Embassy official in Asmara, Eritrea, that an unnamed individual had entered the Ethiopian Embassy premises and while there had attempted to burn the Ethiopian flag. By Note Verbale dated 28 June 2000, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the State of Eritrea assured the Ethiopian Embassy that the individual in question (who appeared to have been drinking) had been promptly apprehended and was under investigation for pressing of charges under the Eritrean Criminal Code. The individual in question was acting alone.

In its Note Verbale of 28 June 2000, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the State of Eritrea called upon Ethiopia to bring any grievances that it might believe that it has concerning the events of 23 June 2000 to the attention of the World Court in The Hague. The World Court if empowered to resolve complaints of violations of diplomatic and consular immunities under international law.

Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Asmara, 28 June 2000

150 Eritreans Deported from Ethiopia
June 28, 2000

Today, Wednesday, 28 June 2000, 150 Eritreans and Ethiopians of Eritrean origin arrived in Eritrea after having been forced out of their homes in Ethiopia in violation of all humanitarian laws and conventions.

In addition to this, since January 2000, 299 other Eritreans have been dumped along the war torn border, bringing the total number of people deported from Ethiopia from the start of the conflict to 70,449. Of this group, 14,500 were deported from 39 villages in the region of Tigray.

In its occupation of the Gash Barka region in western Eritrea, the invading and subsequently retreating Ethiopian army looted and vandalized all properties in its path. Its wrath was most maliciously inflicted upon 15,000 former inhabitants of the region who were dragged from their homes, had their houses burned, their cattle stolen and their crops pillaged. These people were left entirely destitute without any consideration for their rights or their lives.

Also, last week in the town of Guluj, eight civilians of ages ranging from 5 to 86 years were mercilessly killed by the Ethiopian army while it retreated.

Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Asmara, 28 June 2000

Ethiopian Army Demolishes the Towns of Tessenei and Guluj
June 21, 2000

In a nefarious act of state vandalism, the Ethiopian army has burned virtually all public, commercial and private premises and looted property in Tessenei and Guluj before evacuating from these places on Monday, 19 June 2000.

In Tessenei, the power plant, the bank, private shops, the school, cereal warehouses, the Shell and Total petrol stations, and several residential houses were gutted with fire. Organized looting teams brought from Ethiopia for the purpose loaded trucks and took away movable property from shops and commercial premises, not sparing even small items such as kitchen utensils from private homes. The extent of damage incurred in Guluj was not fully known at press time although there were reports of the wanton burning of several residential quarters.

Ethiopia reoccupied Tessenei last week "to demonstrate" that it was not forced out of the town but "evacuated it due to political instructions form the government." It is now clear that this political instruction had no aim other than "finishing the job" of destroying the city as was the case with Barentu. As it will be recalled, the Ethiopian army had demolished the new cotton processing plant in nearby Ali Gidir during its first occupation of Tessenei but the city was largely spared from destruction apparently because the army had no time to complete its intended aims of senseless vandalism.

Ethiopia's acts of wanton destruction in Tessenei and Guluj have occurred in the aftermath of the signature by both sides of the OAU agreement on the cessation of hostilities.

Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Asmara, 21 June 2000

ICRC Sponsored Voluntary Repatriation of Ethiopians Will Commence
June 18, 2000

Voluntary repatriation of Ethiopians will commence on Monday, June 19, 2000. The first group is scheduled to depart Adi Kaih between 10:00-12:00 hours.

The ICRC-Asmara in coordination with the ICRC-Addis Ababa for the past week has been making all the necessary preparations to conduct a legally successful repatriation of Ethiopians to their home country. ICRC-Asmara had already interviewed close to 4,000 Ethiopians to determine that they are voluntarily repatriating; that upon their return to their home country their security is not jeopardized; and that there is no separation of family members.

These close to 4,000 Ethiopians have been internally displaced in Eritrea as a result of Ethiopia's naked aggression against Eritrea. As a result of the same aggression, about 1.5 million Eritreans are currently internally displaced with no adequate shelter, food, clean water and medicine.

The Government of Eritrea and ICRC-Asmara wished to start the repatriation earlier with about 1,500 to 2,000 persons per trip. Unfortunately, the Ethiopian Government was dragging its feet and refused for the first batch to exceed 500. This is not the first time Ethiopia has refused to receive its citizens. Towards the end of 1998 and the beginning of 1999, after all the necessary preparations were completed, Ethiopia refused to receive its citizens.

It is to be recalled that Ethiopia, signatory to the Geneva Convention, had illegally deported 70,000 Eritreans, confiscated their properties and separated families.

Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Asmara, 18 June 2000

Statement of the Government of Eritrea
June 15, 2000

The Government of Eritrea had strongly deplored Ethiopia's declaration of war against Eritrea in May 1998 and the invasion that it has perpetrated for more than a month now. This war, and its continuation in any form, remains both unnecessary and avoidable with no justification or benefits whatsoever other than inculcating an enormous loss of life and destruction of property. Who has gained or lost in this war? Which side has emerged victorious and which side was defeated? We shall not rush into conclusions for the sake of public consumption or on the basis of sheer emotions. Time and history will attest the truth and we can wait for that judgment in patience.

The Government of Eritrea has consistently rejected, from the outset, the imposition of a solution through war and force, choosing instead the path of peace and legality. This is illustrated by the positive positions it took, at various junctures, in regard to the OAU peace proposals. The positive and constructive stance that it took at the proximity talks in Algiers convened while the war was raging is another evidence of its position corroborated by the events and documents of the proceedings of the peace talks. The fact is the Government of Eritrea did not hesitate to accept without equivocation and delay the OAU proposals on ceasefire and the redeployment of troops.

Ceasefire and the redeployment of troops do not only constitute key provisions of the OAU peace documents, but they are also vital for terminating the war and the logic of force which have no justification or meaning. They will also pave the way for the ultimate resolution of the dispute through peaceful and legal means. These are precisely the reasons why Eritrea has been advocating for a cessation of hostilities from the beginning and why it accepted the current OAU proposal promptly and without equivocation.

If the end of war and the redeployment of troops are acceptable as a first step, the OAU Agreement must be signed. The enforcement of the provisions of the Agreement should also be verified on the ground in the shortest possible time. Both sides must also proceed to implement the subsequent measures of the peace process without prevarication and with the requisite good faith and seriousness.

The Government of Eritrea reaffirms to the Eritrean people and the international community that it will persist on its firm stance for a peaceful and legal resolution to the conflict and that it will continue to work constructively, with the necessary patience and precautions, to implement the Agreement on ceasefire and redeployment of troops as well as the subsequent components of the OAU peace package.

Asmara, 15 June 2000

Over 11,000 Ethiopian Soldiers Put Out of Action in the Week-Long Battles on the Assab Front
June 12, 2000(7:00 a.m. LT)

The Eritrean Armed Forces have released the figures for Ethiopia's staggering losses on the Assab front for the battles that raged from 5 to 11 June 2000. Four Ethiopian divisions with additional units were employed in these battles.

The Ethiopian army launched three successive offensives in those six days. On June 5 and 6, Ethiopian launched medium scale attacks on the Assab front employing four brigades in total.

Ethiopian then unleashed a large-scale offensive by deploying three divisions and additional units at 10:30 p.m. on Thursday, June 8. This offensive continued with high intensity for more than 48 hours when it was totally repulsed around 11:00 p.m. Saturday. The invading Ethiopian army was driven back to its original positions with the following staggering losses:

• * 4,125 Ethiopian soldiers killed (actual body count),
• 7110 wounded, including some taken prisoner,
• seven tanks and two Zu-23 mounted armored vehicles destroyed, and
• huge quantities of light and medium weapons, and communication radios captured.

Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Asmara, 12 June 2000

Ethiopia's Offensive on the Assab Front Totally Foiled;
Eritrean Forces Capture Strategic Positions on the Senafe Front
June 11, 2000(10:30 a.m. LT)

The Ethiopian large scale offensive on the Assab front, involving more than three divisions, has been totally foiled after more than 48 hours of intensive fighting. Ethiopian forces have been forced to retreat, with staggering losses, to their original positions. Fighting has subsided this morning apart from the odd shelling. Full details of Ethiopian losses were not available at press time.

On the Senafe front, Eritrean forces were able to dislodge Ethiopian forces from strategic and commanding heights on the left side of the town after a daylong battle yesterday. Ethiopian losses on this front were also high.

The fighting in the western part of the country between Om Hajer and Guluj continued all day yesterday without any change in the relative positions of both sides. Eritrean forces had liberated Tessenei, Barentu, Haikota, Tokombia, Awgaro and Guluj earlier in the week.

In the meantime, Ethiopia has missed the OAU deadline to pronounce unequivocally its acceptance or rejection of the OAU proposal on the cessation of hostilities. The Ethiopian Foreign MinisterJwent back to Addis Abeba "for consultation with the leadership." This is Addis Abeba's characteristic tactic of obstructing the peace process. Ethiopia's agenda of war is determined by the closely-knit seven-member TPLF Politbureau, many members of which do not have any formal position in the government.

Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Asmara, 11 June 2000

Ethiopia Perpetrates Offensives on All Three Fronts
June 10, 2000(2:45 p.m. LT)

The Ethiopian regime has continued its war of invasion on the Assab front. The large-scale offensive that Ethiopia launched on this front on Thursday at 10:30 p.m. has continued throughout tonight and was raging fiercely at press time.

Ethiopia has unleashed this attack deep inside sovereign Eritrean territory despite Eritrea's redeployment from its fortifications at the established border (km. 71) almost two weeks ago in response to an arrangement made by the OAU and its partners.

Ethiopia attempted to justify its war of invasion and flagrant violation of the OAU arrangement claiming that this was "in response to Eritrean provocations." But, foreign journalists who visited the battle area yesterday confirmed that fighting was occurring at the new frontline to which Eritrea redeployed in response to the appeal by the OAU Chairman and its partners.

Ethiopia has also today unleashed new attacks on the Senafe and Om Hajer-Guluj fronts. Ethiopia's offensives come in the wake of the OAU proposal calling for an immediate cessation of hostilities, which Eritrea formally accepted yesterday. Ethiopia was expected to give its response at the 12:00 p.m. (Algiers time) today. Ethiopia's actions however demonstrate that it has already given its practical answer of rejection.

Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Asmara, 10 June 2000

Ethiopia Launches Large-Scale Offensive on Assab Front
June 9, 2000(7:00 a.m. LT)

The Ethiopian regime unleashed a large-scale offensive on the Assab front yesterday evening. The all-out attack throughout the entire front was launched at 10:30 p.m. yesterday evening and followed small-scale attacks and intensive shelling during the day. Ethiopia has deployed more than three divisions in the offensive.

Fighting was continuing at press time with Ethiopian forces sustaining huge losses.

As Eritrea has underlined repeatedly, Ethiopia's continuing offensives on the Assab front constitute a flagrant act of invasion in contravention of the UN Security Council resolutions (1297 and 1298) which uphold the sovereignty and territorial integrity of both states as well as the Charters of the OAU and the UN.

Moreover, since Eritrea had redeployed, unilaterally and in accordance with the express appeal of the OAU Chairman to 37 kms. abandoning its traditional position at the border line (71 kms), Ethiopia's invasion is a clear breach of the understandings reached with the OAU Chairman and the partners of the OAU (the United States and the European Union) involved in the peace process. The failure of the OAU and its partners to publicly condemn Ethiopia's repeated acts of invasion on the Assab front and to take appropriate measures for rectification have no doubt encouraged Ethiopia to dwell on its aggression with impunity and have put the credibility of the arrangements in question.

Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Asmara, 9 June 2000

Statement of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the State of Eritrea
on the Crimes Against Humanity Being Committed
by the Inhumane Government in Ethiopia
June 6, 2000

After thirty years of struggle and hardship, the acts of violence and savagery being committed against the people of Eritrea have not ceased. From the onset of this brutal war, the oppressive and inhumane government in Ethiopia has taken on the extreme mission to not only destroy the State of Eritrea but also to inflict the most incomprehensible suffering on its people possible. It has shown, without any remorse or moral discernment, that its desire is to reign as the bearers of anguish and despair against fellow members of humanity.

Without consideration for its own people, the TPLF government in Ethiopia continues to wage a war that has gained nothing but the unnecessary bloodshed and suffering of its own people. Despite its heavy and unacceptable cost, the government chooses to send waves of its soldiers into war conditions that are treacherous and surely to result in massacres. The loss of human lives has become an exploitable tactic of the war-hungry regime in Ethiopia, which they do not shy away from using or admitting.

A Chronicle of Human Rights Abuses Perpetrated by the Ethiopian Government

1. The very first actions carried out by the Ethiopian government once it declared war against Eritrea were to inflict as much suffering and disruption of lives as possible, not only on the people of Eritrea but also on the people of Ethiopia. More than 70,000 Eritreans and Ethiopians of Eritrean origin living throughout Ethiopia have been sequestered, stripped of their belongings, and left destitute near the border to venture across mine-filled battle zones to fend for themselves. These 70,000 people have been subjected to the most extreme forms of human rights violations. Their lives have been maliciously struck with as much inhumane treatment as possible, characterized by the forced separation of families, the forced abandonment of children left attended and helpless, and confiscation of approximately $800 million worth of properties.

2. Whole Eritrean villages from lower Adiabo in Tigray have been deported from the area. The ruling officials of the region of Tigray, the home of the TPLF, have ruthlessly set on fire the cultivated fields and crops that were to be harvested in coming months. Since this expulsion, these Eritreans have had to relocate to temporary sites in lowland Seraye, Eritrea, where they have been living in make shift tents and under plastic sheets. During the recent invasion of this land by the Ethiopian army, these refugee camps were torn apart by ground and aerial bombardment, forcing the people into dislocation once again. Today, there is no Eritrean living in Tigray; this entire province has been ethnically cleansed of Eritreans, an example of Ethiopia's persistent policy of torment and terrorization.

3. Around 1,500 youth, claimed as "prisoners of war," have been incarcerated within Ethiopia. These young men have become prisoners of this war without ever engaging in belligerent or combative actions against Ethiopia. On this matter, in spite of appeals made to many European countries, the US and Canada by the human rights organization Citizens for Peace in Eritrea, there has been no response by the international community for the release and protection of these innocent victims. The government of Ethiopia has for the last two years indiscriminately jailed many of these Eritrean youth without any viable cause or evidence but the fact that they are Eritrean and of military age. In addition to this, there still remain another 2,500 Eritreans missing in Ethiopia whose whereabouts are unaccounted.

4. Out of the estimated 130,000 Eritreans who were once living in Ethiopia, roughly only 30,000 remain. They are constantly subjected to harsh forms of discrimination and deprivation, including the denial of their children's right to attend public schools. They have been thrown out of public jobs without any compensation or explanation andJtheir private business licenses have been revoked impeding their sources of income for survival. These people of Eritrea live under constant threat of violence yet those who have registered to be repatriated to Eritrea with the ICRC have been refused permission by the government of Ethiopia to leave.

5. By advocating hate and bloodshed, Ethiopia's campaign of destruction for more than two years has succeeded in inculcating a culture of violence. This is best manifested in the carnage that the invading Ethiopian army wreaks as it enters and subsequently flees from occupied areas of Eritrea. In the two weeks that the Ethiopian army occupied the town of Barentu, modern hotels, public and private buildings and the bridge connecting the town to neighboring areas were completely demolished and looted.

6. The recent violence committed against villagers in Molqi, Shambuco and other areas in the western lowlands was particularly vicious and carried out to deliver deadly harm. By taking away the livestock of Eritreans and looting their grain, the Ethiopian army deprived these people of their means to live, in turn leaving them for dead.