UN Human Rights Delegation visits Keren - Credit: Didier Farsy

United Nations Human Rights team visits Eritrea


A United Nations Human Rights team visited Eritrea yesterday, a senior Eritrean official announced via Twitter.

The UN team met with government officials, civil society representatives, and the diplomatic community. They also visited Keren and took a tour of some of the development projects in the country, the official said.

The trip comes just one month after UNDP delegation, headed by Mr. Abdoulaye Mar Dieye, Assistant Secretary General and Regional Director of UNDP/RBA, visited Eritrea.

During their meeting, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Osman Saleh pointed out the UNDP visit was fruitful as it laid the groundwork for high-level interaction pertaining to national development agendas and joint partnerships.

“No nation can achieve sustainable development in the absence of safe neighborhood and cooperative regional environment,” the Foreign Minister said.

Eritrean ambassador to the AU, H.E. Girma Asmerom debating with Ethiopian Minister for Foreign Affairs Berhane Gebre-Christos - January 27, 2014

It’s Time for Eritrea and Ethiopia to Bury the Hatchet

By Dawit Gebremichael Habte,

Mr. Herman Cohen, the former Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs, has published an article titled “Time to Bring Eritrea in from the Cold” on 16 December 2013.

In his article, Mr. Cohen has done a commendable job in detailing the sequence of events that took place since Eritrea’s formal independence from Ethiopia. I also fully agree with Mr. Cohen’s recommendation to normalize the relationship between Eritrea and Ethiopia “following the end of UN sanctions against Eritrea” and the normalization “would have immediate benefits for both countries.”

I only take exception with Mr. Cohen’s characterization of the “root-cause” of the “border-conflict” between Eritrea and Ethiopia. I believe Mr. Cohen could have served his readers better had he presented Eritrea’s relationship with Ethiopia in its proper historical and political context.

As part of his “root-cause analysis”, Mr. Cohen stated that “[t]he relationship [between Eritrea and Ethiopia] started to cool in 1997 when the Eritreans created their own currency, theNakfa. They did this without arranging to establish a system of daily settlements for cross border trade between their currency and the Ethiopian Birrh,” implying that Eritrean government’s decision to issue their national currency without consulting the Ethiopian government was the root-cause of the “border conflict” between Eritrea and Ethiopia.

If we are to look at the issuance of the Eritrean currency as an isolated event, we might have sympathy to Mr. Cohen’s claim. But, we have to put Eritrea’s relationship with Ethiopia in its proper historical and political context in order to have better understanding of the “root-cause” of the “border conflict” that never was.

With respect to the successive Ethiopian rulers’ policies towards Eritrea, Emperor Haile Selassie openly declared that Ethiopia was interested in Eritrea’s land, but not its people.

Colonel Menghistu Hailemariam, Emperor Haile Selassie’s successor, on his part declared that he will “dry the sea in order to kill the fish”, using the “fish” as a metaphor for the Eritrean’s armed struggle for independence and the “sea” for the people of Eritrea.

Meles Zenawi, Ethiopia’s last Prime Minister, in his part, while publicly telling the people of Eritrea “not to scratch their wounds”, in private, he was telling US intelligence officers such as the late Paul Henze, “we really hope that Eritrea can remain part of a federated Ethiopia.” Meles Zenawi saw Eritrea’s independence only as a political expediency.

The answer to the “root-cause” of the conflict between Eritrea and Ethiopia is found in Meles Zenawi’s interview conducted with his longtime supporter and US intelligence officer, Mr. Paul Henze, in April 1990. The interview was conducted one year prior to Eritrea’s independence in May 24, 1991. This is what Meles Zenawi had to say when asked what his preference would be when it comes to Eritrea’s independence:

“We look at this from the viewpoints of the interests of Tigray first, and then Ethiopia as a whole. We would like to see Eritrea continuing to have a relationship with Ethiopia. We know that Tigray needs access to the sea, and the only way is through Eritrea. Whether Eritrea is part of Ethiopia or independent, we need this access…”

Meles Zenawi was “not sure that differences among [Eritrea’s] different [religious] groups can be kept under control” once Eritrea declared its independence because, according to Meles, “[t]here are serious tensions between Eritrean Christians and Muslims”.

Meles Zenawi wrongly believed that Eritrea’s religious and cultural diversity would become a cause for conflict once Eritreans obtained their independence from Ethiopia. He could not have been any more wrong. Once independence was confirmed in 1991, Eritrean Christians and Muslims took themselves to the daunting task of reconstruction and nation building.

Unfortunately, this did not last long. In June 1997, Ethiopian military units started destroying farmlands and harassing farmers in the area of Bada and the towns bordering the Tigray region, the region where Meles Zenawi and members of his party hail from. About a year after that, in May 13, 1998, the Ethiopian Parliament led by Prime Meles Zenawi declared an all-out war in the name of a “border-conflict” and ended up seizing a third of Eritrean territory at the cost of tens of thousands in human lives. The mediations and peace process that followed the cessation of hostilities is well detailed by Mr. Cohen.

When dealing with matters of “peace and war” between Eritrea and Ethiopia, we cannot undermine the historical and political misgivings Eritreans suffered in the hands of Ethiopia and the international community. Eritrea has been betrayed by the international community for the umpteenth time. Putting historical mishaps to the side, in 2000, Eritrea accepted a peace agreement that was drafted by Anthony Lake, President Clinton’s special envoy, and Susan Rice, the Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs at the time. Eritrea accepted the “final and binding” peace agreement to delimit and demarcate the border between Eritrea and Ethiopia in accordance to “pertinent colonial treaties (1900, 1902 and 1908) and applicable international law“.

According to the “final and binding” peace agreement signed between Eritrea and Ethiopia and witnessed and guaranteed by the United States and the UN, the Ethiopia-Eritrea Border Commission (EEBC) was explicitly forbidden from making any decisions “ex aequo et bono“. Once the Commission rendered its decision, however, Ethiopia rejected the decision and retracted on both conditions: it wants to negotiate the “final and binding” decision because it wants the court to decide “ex aequo et bono“. According to Ethiopia, the delimitation decision of the neutral commission was “illegal, unfair and unjust.”

Eritrean has proven its respect and adherence to the international law a number of times. It’s time for Ethiopia to do so. Ethiopia needs to abide by the “final and binding” Algiers Agreement it signed as first step to building confidence and trust between the two nations. It is also time for the international community and especially for the United States to let Ethiopia know that it must abide by peace agreements it signed. For the US and the international community to be considered as honest brokers, they have to be impartial and fair.

Mr. Herman Cohen’s recommendation for Ethiopia to vacate Eritrean territories it is occupying by force and for Eritrea to immediately start dialogue with Ethiopia is the best proposal that has yet to come from current or former US government officials. This is refreshing and needs to be taken to heart.

Ethiopians need to fully understand that the Eritrea that was illegally and forcefully annexed to Ethiopia in 1960 is no more. At the same time, irrespective of their historical misgivings and the repeated miscarriages of justice rendered upon them by the international community, Eritreans need to look forward to their peaceful coexistence with Ethiopians, their neighbors to the South. Both Eritreans and Ethiopians need to look forward to the peace dividend.

It is time for Eritrea and Ethiopia to bury the hatchet so that the people of both nations can realize the intrinsic and instrumental values of the peace dividend.

Qatar Airways aims to make Asmara its 21st African destination

Qatar Airways Delegation arrived in Eritrea

Qatar Airways delegation arrived in Asmara to discuss its plans to start direct flights to Eritrea, according to a source familiar with the situation.

The visit is a strong indication that Qatar Airways is closer to making Asmara its 21st African destination, an observer noted.

News the Doha-based airliner is going to start flights to Eritrea was first announced in November by Simon Teklesenbet, an official working for the Eritrean Embassy in Qatar.

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This post will be updated as more information is provided.

Study finds Eritrea among the least countries to experience a coup attempt in 2014 -  Picture: 2012 Independence Celebrations in Asmara

Eritrea Among Least Likely Countries to Experience a Coup

Eritrea is listed among one of the least countries at risk of experiencing a coup attempt in 2014, according to a study conducted by political scientist Jay Ulfelder.

The study, which uses a mathematical model to predict the likelihood of coups in almost every country around the world, gives Eritrea less than 2.4 percent chance of facing a coup this year.

Regionally, the study ranks Sudan, Somalia, South Sudan, and Ethiopia within the top 40 countries most at risk of a coup attempt to occur.

Ulfelder's model uses a dozen variables - from the type of political system the country uses to its infant mortality rate - to forecast the country's risk factors.

Click to enlarge. Data source: Jay Ulfelder coup forecasts for 2014. (Mas Fisher/Washington Post)

The 40 countries most at risk for a coup in 2014 (Jay Ulfelder)

Asmara, Eritrea - Credit: Natasha Stallard

Only in Asmara

By Natasha Stallard,


The modernist capital of Africa, Asmara is a city full of sweetness, stillness and very cheap cappuccinos

Ask anyone in Asmara what their favourite building is and the answer is always the same: ‘the Fiat’. It’s difficult to disagree. Sitting squarely on the edge of a roundabout in Asmara, the capital city of Eritrea and the centre of Italy’s former African empire, the Fiat Tagliero Service Station is a glorious sight. Art deco lettering spells out its name in both Italian and Amharic in a font worthy of a Fellini film poster, while two thirty metre concrete wings soar across the former garage forecourt below, mimicking an aeroplane.

Built in 1938 by architect Giuseppe Pettazzi, the Fiat building’s wings strike a gallant pose, full of the bold attitude of the era. Thanks to leaps and bounds in technology and transportation, from airmail to diesel engine trains, the world in the 1930s had never felt so immediate. 1938 was the year of Orson Welles’ ‘War of the Worlds’, the first nylon bristle toothbrush, the ballpoint pen and a Europe on the brink of war. Over in Italy, Prime Minister Mussolini and his Facist party were no longer flirting with their imperial ambitions to conquer as much of Africa as possible, launching themselves full force from their inherited Italian colony of Eritrea and its new capital city Asmara. He called the city ‘La Piccola Roma’ – Africa’s little Rome.

Mussolini encouraged architects and engineers to transform Asmara into an urban utopia, full of cinemas, cafés, imported bicycles, sycamore trees and world-class architecture. Blueprints for the uber-Futurist Fiat building were so ambitious however, they were initially met with scepticism. And understandably. Its two unsupported wings relied on a feat of engineering never witnessed before, in Europe or in Africa.

'It's the reason I became an architect. It’s a very peculiar building. Structurally it was very bold. Structural engineers nowadays wouldn’t dare to build a cantilever half the size of that,’ explains Mesfi Metuasu, a local architect and urban planner who has been working with Asmara’s buildings since 1995. Unfazed by critics, Pettazzi remained confident in his design, so much so that he insisted on standing beneath one of its wings as its supports were removed. If his design failed, he would have been crushed.

He wasn’t. Or so the story goes. Like many of Asmara’s buildings, the Fiat and its history have been neglected over the years; the official records are in disarray and the building was barely accessible to anyone outside the country. The Italians were not the first, or the last, to lay claim to Eritrea.

Colonised by the Ottomans, the Egyptians, the Italians, the British and then the Ethiopians, after thirty years of conflict with the Haile Selassie’s Ethiopian army, Eritrea finally won its independence in 1991. Asmara’s buildings were revealed once more – leaving architects around the world gobsmacked.

Eritrea’s modern history has been brutal to its people but freakishly kind to its architecture. The conflicts placed Asmara’s buildings in a time capsule, and a walk through the city’s streets leaves your sense of time and place feeling a little skew-whiff: art deco cinemas, futurist service stations, a building shaped like a wireless radio, bowling alleys with wooden pins, pizzerias, palm trees. Little building took place in Asmara post-1960, saving the city from the embarrassments of late 20th century development that blemish other capitals. Mussolini’s Little Rome remained intact, although a little rough around the edges, and the Italian dolce vita seeped into the very psychology of the city.

‘Not everyone is conscious of the architecture in Asmara. But whether conscious or unconscious, everyone’s lifestyle here is influenced by the character of the urban space. We spend a lot of time out of the house – having cappuccino and macchiato in the cafés, walking through the city, meeting on Harnet Avenue. The buildings have their role,’ explains Metuasu, drinking espresso in his government office. ‘The historic heart makes it function. The buildings influence what you see, how you move and the character of the city. Even on weekdays it’s very active.’

Walking along the streets of Asmara on a cool, dark August evening (very dark: the government electricity shuts down every evening and the working streetlamps are few and far between) you feel the city’s sweetness. Its stillness. Its streets are busy but without the clatter of Sudan’s Khartoum or Ethiopia’s Addis Abada, Eritrea’s northern and southern neighbours. The hours pass by smoothly. ‘You appreciate the nature of Asmara when you go to other cities. Cairo is chaos. This is cool,’ smiles Metuasu.

And at night, the cafés and streets stay full. Especially on Harnet Avenue. Previously known as Mussolini Avenue and Haile Sellassie Avenue, its former names are a painful reminder of the racial segregation the city once endured, when no Eritrean was allowed to enter the street without being arrested. Now, it’s full of friendly faces.

‘We drink tea and traditional coffee at home so when I go out and meet my friends we all drink cappuccino,’ says Luwan Berhe, 24, an assistant at The Gallery art gallery and bookshop, who says her favourite building is ‘the Fiat’, obviously. ‘Bar Royal is one of the most popular cafés right now. It was built in 1953. If you come after 7 or 8pm you won’t find a single chair.’ Berhe is right. Summer in Asmara is lively: its 5.6 million population swells with visitors from Eritrea’s worldwide diaspora.

Spreading from Sudan to Seattle, it’s a closely-knit community. The Eritrean bond is strong. As a capital city it’s therefore relatively safe: crime is proudly non-existent and the streets are as calm as a village. The birds sing and the leaves rustle in the Rift Valley breeze even on the most built-up Internet café-cladden streets. Fiat Bambinos, vintage Ladas and Volkswagen beetles, used for driving lessons, cruise and stutter down the wide, ordered and palm-tree lined streets. Bicycles are everywhere.

‘Wherever there’s a road in Eritrea, there’s a bicycle,’ laughs Filmon Mihreteab, a sharply dressed translator with a love for Paulo Coelho and spaghetti bolognese. Eritrea is cycling mad and the breathtaking slope of the 100km road from Asmara to the Red Sea sees a lot of cycling shorts. ‘There’s no word for bicycle in Eritrea. We call it "bicycletta", like the Italians.’ Over a slice at Napoly Pizzeria, Mihreteab explains how the Italians left a permanent thumbprint on Eritrean life. However, in Asmara, a cappuccino doesn’t always just mean a cappuccino.

‘The cafés are full at night, sure. But people aren’t really interested in the cappuccino, they’re interested in the conversations you can have. If you want to sit in a café, you have to order something – and cappuccino is just the cheapest thing.’ Cafés such as Victoria, which still uses an old Gappia coffee machine, and Tre Stelle (Italian for ‘three stars’), charge ten nakfa for a cappuccino and eight nakfa for a macchiato – a little less than a dollar.

Visitors to Asmara are rare. Direct flights operate via Eritrean Airlines only (who have no website), via Cairo, Dubai and Frankfurt. Most tourists are henna-splattered brides and their grooms on honeymoon from Sudan, as well as curious architecture students. Efforts are being made to preserve the city, but slowly. The Cultural Assets Rehabilitation Programme, fuelled by the recently published hardback ‘Asmara: Africa’s Secret Modernist City’, is currently lobbying to have Asmara’s architectural superstars listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site.

Quite rightly. ‘When people are conscious of the beauty of the buildings, they will fall in love,’ says Metuasu. Like most cities, the best way to discover its human history is often through its buildings. Asmara and its art deco timewarp is no exception.

Asmara, Eritrea - Credit: Natasha Stallard

Fiat  building in Asmara - Credit: Natasha Stallard

Asmara Cafe - Credit Natasha Stallard

Egyptian delegation meeting with Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki

Third Bi-Weekly Newsletter Released


The Press Section of the Permanent Mission of the State of Eritrea to the AU and UNECA has released its third edition of its bi-weekly newsletter.

To view their previous newsletters, click here and here.

Eri-TV anchorman Raphael Giuseppe (R) with staff members in Asmara. These men dedicate their lives to informing the public and fighting disinformation against Eritrea - Credit: Afshin  Rattansi

Don’t Worry About Eritrea, Be Concerned About Ethiopia

Written by Aron Abraham,

Over the years, Eritreans have witnessed an increased number of, for lack of a better term, cyber commentators, who made taking cheap and illogical shots at Eritrea and its people their hobby. Basically there are two groups who seem to be engaged in this activity more than any. Discerning their thin facade reveals their true identity and motives which, although it might not come as a surprise, as all are well known in the community and people whom they are trying to prey upon, it’s not to be ignored and should be addressed.

For starters when analyzing such intense obsession, it’s prudent to look up the word “obsession” itself, which both groups have displayed they have in common regarding Eritrea. This obsession, which is medically termed as “mania”, will definitely make an interesting study into the human psychology in the near future about what drives one to ultimately grab onto the success (be it a person, an object or even a race or a nation) either in a positive way (feeling and claiming allegiance) or in a negative way (lashing out and bad mouthing). Sharing or voicing one's opinion or thoughts is not a problem, rather a sign of civilization and maturity but a targeted, pointed and constant negation and instigation in one direction has lifted those individuals from that sphere of doubt and cast them into an absolute, doubt free zone where souls that can’t be condoned exist.

The first group with the likes of Leonardo Vincent, Dan Connell and Martin Plaut have been discussed and discarded quite often so I will not dwell upon those individuals. The other interesting group of experts, commentators and analysts regarding Eritrea are the Ethiopians. Mostly compromising of ethnic Tigrai scholars who seem to be on a mission to lecture Eritreans about Eritrea.

Looking back on how most came about, its easy to see even though given a wide range of platforms in the internal Ethiopia Media from 1998-2002, they were driven out of this as their readership and influence dwindled. The Ethiopian public became more informed about actual events and started to discern this false information being fed to it. But with the active help of the TPLF regime  those same people began using other external platforms.

Including the Ethiopian Government sponsored websites of Eritrea, they found sympathizers who are simply following the general anti Eritrea direction given and encouraged by the misguided west by such media outlets as Aljazeera (English), AllAfrica.com and Sudan Tribune.com .Those news agencies, happen to be owned by foreign entities and provide news as they see fit, not as is or not even attempting to provide a balanced outlook.

As an example, view the content of these articles:

1. This article published on AllAfrica.com was written by Berouk Mesfin, who has the title of Senior Researcher and works at the Conflict Prevention and Risk Analysis Division (CPRA) in Addis Ababa. CPRA is  part of a “think-tank organization ” called Institute for Security Studies. Staffers at ISS, despite the institutes claim to be a regional and continental  organization, appear to be ignoring the plights and inhuman conditions the Ethiopian population are suffering while wasting no time in criticizing any Eritrean mishap or situation.


2.  Sudan Tribune; picks and chooses what to publish from only pro Ethiopia and/ or anti Eritrean sites, and on the occasions it does publish its own articles usually appearing under a nameless byline. Check this article as an example of a news report which was made to appear it was reported from Shire, Ethiopia. Does it make any sense that Sudan Tribune would have a reporter in Shire, Tigrai, Ethiopia? How large and well-funded must it be to have a reporter in such a small village such as Shire? A reasonable explanation would be it was reported by its regular contributors such as Tesfa-Alem Tekle and others who are reporters in Mekele?


3. Aljazeera, certainly not to be left out, publishes articles written by such individuals as Goitom Gebreluel an academic hailing from Mekelle University. 

Now as a normal, logical train of thought one would have to ask why is this intense attention given to Eritrea? Have those people who are spending valuable time worrying about Eritrea? Have they uplifted their own country from its problems? Have they cleaned their homes enough to feel obligated to such attention to their neighbors’ house?

Let considering the following articles of events happening in Ethiopia at the same time most are writing about Eritrea:

1) Internal Displacement due to land being sold to highest bidder and forcing the indigenous people out of their ancestral land has and is creating a mass exodus to neighboring Kenya which is currently hosting over 100,00 Ethiopian Refugees from Southern and Western Ethiopia.

http://www.survivalinternational.org/news/9777

http://www.aljazeera.com/news/africa/2012/07/20127315318992592.html

http://www.voanews.com/content/thirty_thousand_enter_kenya_to_escape_ethiopian_ethnic_clash/1449052.html

A recent move by the US Congress regarding this landgrab is a late but positive reflection of what has been a tragic end to a traditional way of life for many.

2) The disturbing genocide being conducted in the Ogaden Region, which has and still is claming the lives of thousands as we speak.

http://www.genocidewatch.org/ethiopia.html

http://humanrightsinethiopia.wordpress.com/

Presently this is being investigated by Swedish military court and soon possibly by ICC as its first genocide case.

http://www.goolgule.com/meeting-to-take-eprdf-to-international-court/


While these are the major situations which require immediate media, analysts, conflict prevention and academics’ attention, why are they focused on Eritrea? Other issues the current minority government of Ethiopia and its mouthpieces need to deal with and solve include education, water and electricity, migration and the effort to attain that taboo word of being aid and reliance free from donations and the sympathy of the world. Ironically, there is always this underlying effort to compare Eritrea with Ethiopia. But truth of the matter is, Eritrea which is well under way to sturdy and unshakable self sufficiency and infrastructure development in most sectors, while their nation which is rich, fertile and much more older is still at the top of the list of aid supported and donation receiving nations in the world year after year.

Looking at some outstanding facts certainly gets one thinking a lot regarding criticizing others while your laundry is full of dirt. As simple examples let’s see the following:

Fact #1: 2013 alone has seen the migration of 160,000 legal and tens of thousands illegal’s to nearby Middle Eastern countries. http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-01-24/saudis-turn-to-ethiopian-maids-after-beheading-limits-supplies.html

Fact #2: After decades of being the poster nation for aid, drought and famine, still more than 13 million are expected to be kept alive by UN WFP aid. http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/05/12/to-survive-famine-will-work-for-insurance/?_r=0

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/horn-of-africa-food-crisis-latest-updates

Fact # 3: The Governments corruption which is eating away the economy from its core is estimated to exceed 16 Billion.

http://www.tadias.com/05/13/2013/how-big-is-corruption-in-ethiopia-16-5-billion-lost-to-illegal-smuggling-of-cash/

http://www.dailymaverick.co.za/opinionista/2011-12-13-a-climate-of-corruption-ethiopian-edition/#.UmrMDXAp_44

Fact #4: Ethiopian youth illiteracy rate is at its lowest since it began getting recorded with less than 39% getting education: http://www.unicef.org/infobycountry/ethiopia_statistics.html

http://country-facts.findthedata.org/q/84/2395/What-is-the-literacy-rate-in-Ethiopia-a-country-in-the-continent-of-Africa

Fact #5: 61.5% of Ethiopia’s population is deprived of adequate schooling http://www.ophi.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/Global-Multidimensional-Poverty-Index-2013-8-pager.pdf?18be84

Fact #6: 50 % Unemployment rate has led the youth to seek migration.

http://www.economics.ox.ac.uk/index.php/centre-for-the-study-of-african-economies-series/the-nature-of-unemployment-in-urban-ethiopia

Fact #7: As for much spoken double-digit economic growth, the Economist Magazine casts doubt on such an assertion by noting: “….the Ethiopian inflation figures is fiddled with even more than those in Argentina” and “the double-digit growth rates predicted by the government of Prime Minister Meles Zenawi look fanciful.”

http://www.ethiomedia.com/14store/5375.html

Fact #8: Even though most of those commentators enjoy labeling Eritrea a “failed state”, a recent study has put Ethiopia at the top spot for a Failed State Prize.

http://ffp.statesindex.org/rankings-2013-sortable

Fact #9: Religious, political, and ethnic tensions are on the rise in Ethiopia, making it more vulnerable to a coup.

http://dartthrowingchimp.wordpress.com/2013/01/23/coup-risk-in-2013-mapped-my-way/

So with all the issues plaguing Ethiopia, why do these cyber Ethopian commentators worry so much about Eritrean issues? I, for one do not wish to overburden my neighbors south of the border with a task that does not require their attention or expertise but might be better for them to pay attention to their own issues at hand.

The other main issue at hand is why are those media organizations mentioned above giving these individuals space and opportunity to publish? Why not allow a response or a second opinion (rebuttal) to be published? Quite frankly those individuals who, without a doubt represent the desperate regime in Addis Ababa, can write what they wish on their blogs or government sites, but to be given access to outside source is nothing but a concerted effort to derail the slowly but surly gaining momentum train that is Eritrea while they might be better off salvaging their own conundrum, if it can ever be solved.

As a conclusion, I would like to stress that no matter what’s being written or published the nation of Eritrea will continue on its path. I would also like to leave you with this timeless message from a recent interview with EDF Minister Gen. Sebaht Eferem:

"We cannot make drama and hysteria like the Weyanes, so there's no reason to try. We are not liars and we don't have access to international news agents, because our cause doe not interest international news agencies. So when they make noise by ringing the church bell we can just look at it knowing that the movement of the bell going back in forth will stop sooner or later and when it does, we will either talk if it benefits us and if its irrelevant we will just watch the issue die."

Pekka Haavisto, Finland's Minister for International Development meets with President Isaias Afwerki

Updated: November 4, 3:00 PM EST

European Union Delegation Arrives in Eritrea

A European Union development and diplomatic delegation arrived in Eritrea to discuss development partnership, regional peace and stability, a government spokesman said.

The delegation was met by members of Eritrea National Development and the Foreign Minister. The two sides spoke positive about the current cooperation, and agree to strengthen it.

The EU delegation comes just a week after a two-members UN High Commission on Human Rights team visited Eritrea in connection to the eighteenth session of the Universal Periodic Review.

Over the last few weeks, a number of diplomatic teams have visited the country including Pekka Haavisto, Finland's Minister for International Development, UNDP, high-level Egyptian and Sudanese delegations.

President Isaias Afwerki in New York City with patriotic Eritreans - Credit: Mussie Sibhatu

Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki Turns 68

President Isaias Afwerki turned 68 on Sunday.

Age 67 was quite a year for the Eritrean president. He was declared dead by the so-called Eritrean "opposition" groups, only to be disappointed after hearing he resurrected in the Sudan. When he wasn't resurrecting from death, the president was busy tackling poverty and advancing the economy. Thanks to his administration's policies, the country is experiencing one of the world's fastest-growing economies. Despite accomplishing a lot, more challenges awaits him at age 68, including Asmara housing shortages, strengthening institutions, removing poor internet and mobile policies, weak digital media presence, and defending the country against exogenous threats.

In celebration of his big day, we bring you images of his life throughout the decades:


Isaias in the 1950s

Isaias Afwerki (tallest one) as a child with his brothers in Asmara -1954

Isaias in the 1960s

The picture below is of Isaias in 1967 at the Nanjing Military College in China. The ELF sent him, along with four other fighters, to study political ideologies and guerrilla warfare in China.

Standing L-R: 5th Isaias Afwerki, 6th Mahmoud Ibrahim Chekini/Cecchini, martyred 1972, 7th Ramadan Mohammed Nur, 9th Ahmed Adem Omer. Sitting L-R: 3rd Ahmed Ibrahim Ahmed

Isaias in the 1970s

These men, who were led by Isaias Afawerki (yellow arrow), left ELF to create what would arguably be one of the greatest revolutions in modern times. They rejected tribalism, religious fundamentalism and sexism. They believed  in equality and in empowering women. But above all, they believed in self reliance. It was these young guys that changed the course of history in the region. When this picture was taken in 1974, all of Eritrea's independence hopes rested on a confident 27-year-old Isaias Afwerki's shoulders. He took on the challenge and led Eritrea to victory.

Related reading: Interesting Facts About President Isaias Afwerki

Eritrea's ambassador to the AU, Girma Asmerom Tesfay (L) with Deputy Chairperson of African Union Commission, Erastus Mwencha (R) - Credit: Erastus Mwencha

Girma Asmerom to Become Eritrea's Ambassador to the United Nations

Eritrea’s ambassador to the African Union, Girma Asmerom Tesfay, was given a bidding farewell today by the Deputy Chairperson of African Union Commission, Erastus Mwencha.

Ambassador Girma, who has held his AU post since 2011, leaves for his new duty in New York, where he will replace Araya Desta, Eritrea's current ambassador to the United Nations.

No information was provided as to where Ambassador Araya's next position will be or who will replace Ambassador Girma's AU post.

Ambassador Girma is no stranger to the United States. From 2001-2006, he served as Eritrea's ambassador to the United States and Canada, before being replaced by ambassador Ghirmai Ghebremariam.

It should be recalled, Eritrea appointed 14 ambassadors in December as part of an ongoing government restructuring policy and to strengthen regional and international engagement.

Ambassador Girma with Deputy Chairman of AUC, Erastus Mwencha - Credit: Eraustus Mwencha

Swedish-Eritrean protesters holding a sign that reads "I pay 2% with joy and pride"

Swedish Parliament Rejects Bid to Ban Eritrea's 2% tax


Swedish parliament rejected a bid to ban Eritrea's voluntary 2% recovery and development tax on Swedish-Eritreans, according to Swedish media.

Based on the parliament's findings, the 2% issue for Swedish-Eritreans has been decided legal and said that they have no valid grounds to make it illegal.

"There is no evidence against that would require Sweden to change the law." Swedish parliament said, in a 7-page report released online.

They also stated that if the 2% tax has been used illegally, then the person that is effected can report it to the police, thus it becomes a case for criminal courts

The parliament also added that the tax issue might have been used as a pretext to pressure and blackmail the Eritrean government because of the Dawit Isaac issue, a complaint many Eritreans in the country have made.

Are Swedish-Eritrean relations improving?

There seems to be a thaw in Swedish-Eritrean relations of late, despite no public signs by Eritrea to change its position on Dawit Isaac, a man of dual Swedish-Eritrean citizenship who was detained for treason.

Recently, Eritrea appointed an ambassador to Scandinavia for the first time after 9 years. On its part, Sweden appointed Germany's ambassador to Eritrea, Viktor Richter, as the Swedish Honorary Consul in Asmara.

In December, General Sebhat Ephrem, Eritrea's Minister of Defense, visited Sweden to discuss national matters with citizens; a visit likely approved in advance by the Swedish government.

Whether Sweden is genuinely trying to mend its relations with Eritrea after trying to sabotage its development drive for the last 10 years remains to be seen. However, these small steps are a encouraging sign of relations heading in the right direction.

Despite Sweden's hostility towards Eritrea, many Swedish people, particularly the youth, support Eritrea - Uppsala, Sweden

Swedish citizens come out to support Eritrea's 2% voluntary tax and against the demonization of Eritrea in Swedish media - Uppsala, Sweden

Swedish-Eritrean protesting in favor of 2% voluntary tax and against media demonetization of Eritrea in  Sweden -Uppsala, Sweden

Swedish-Eritrean protesting in favor of 2% voluntary tax and against demonetization of Eritrea in Swedish media - Uppsala, Sweden

Swedish-Eritrean protesting in favor of 2% voluntary tax and against demonetization of Eritrea in Swedish media -Uppsala, Sweden

Cotu secretary-general Francis Atwoli - Credit: Nation.co.ke

Kenyan Parliament Member Said Eritrea is the Hope for the African Continent

Remarks delivered by Bro. Francis Atwoli, MBS, Chairman of the Trade Union Federation of Eastern Africa, TUFEA and Secretary General of Central Organisation of Trade Union, COTU (Kenya), during the Occasion of Saint John The Baptist and the Commencement of the Armed struggle of the People of Eritrea held at The International Casino Nairobi:

Your Excellency Ambassador Saleh Umar, The Ambassador of the State of Eritrea;

Your Excellencies the Ambassadors and High Commissioners present;

Distinguished Guests;

Brothers and Sisters,

It gives me great pleasure on behalf of the Trade Union Federation of Eastern Africa, The Central Organization of Trade Unions and all the workers that the two organizations represent to be with you today during this important celebration in the calendar of the State of Eritrea.

Let me take this opportunity to sincerely appreciate your invitation and pass my warmest regards to all the Eritrean people on this important day.

Brothers and Sisters, our gathering here presents us with yet another opportunity to reflect on the struggle that the people of Eritrea had to endure as well as the achievements already realized since the country’s Independence on the 24th May 1991.

I have personally visited Eritrea on a number of occasions and I can affirm to you that Eritrea portends of a country with just so great a potential and despite having one of the least population on the continent of slightly over 5 million people, its life expectancy is rated at 60 years which is exceptional by any world standards.

The country’s economy is rated second to none on the continent with its legal tender, the Nakfa rated as one of the strongest on the continent with a US Dollar equivalent to 15 Nakfa a rate that is far much higher than most African countries that attained independence over 50 years ago.

Brothers and Sisters, among the world’s Presidents, Eritrean President His Excellency Isaiah Aferworki is the only President whose government recognizes and respects with dignity the Labour Movement.

The President has personally taken upon himself to be as close as possible to the Labour Movement and will even go further to have audience with Labour Leaders from outside his country without the usual bureaucracies and appointments common with most world leaders who view the Presidency as a reserve of the few.

This down-to-earth manner in which the Eritrean President has led his country continue to drive the country’s economy to even higher competitive status.

The infrastructural development together with prudent physical and monitory management of the country’s economy has placed the country top on the continent despite being one of the youngest democracies on the continent having attained independence 17 years ago.

During one of my visits, I was able to travel from Asmara to one of the beautiful towns located 2500 feet down known as Masawa.

I wish to challenge the rest of the leaders on the continent to visit Eritrea and be able to witness the state of a country I am talking about, the wonders in it and the level of development already achieved in a span of few years Eritrea has been independent.

Further, across the continent, it is now evident that the rich African culture that brought the people of Africa together as one people has been eroded and now we are all busy trying to ape foreign strange cultural practices which have no ties with us as a people.

However, Eritrea has positioned itself as a country that finds pride and continues to impress its rich cultural practices.

Despite the influx of Tourists in the country due to its rich tourists attractions and sceneries that have remained unique on the continent, the people of Eritrea have never been intoxicated as witnessed elsewhere in other countries on the continent.

During one of my visits, I was able to take a boat ride to one of the rich Islands in the country and the rich cultural endowment could still be evident on this Island.

The Eritrean people have learnt to do their own things in their own ways unlike most countries who despite having such unique features, they would prefer to adopt the West’s way of doing things which has ended up being a disaster.

However, as workers just like the rest of the world would love to see this beautiful country enjoy a peaceful coexistence with its neighbours.

Particularly, this peace should extend to Ethiopia despite the earlier struggle and animosity between the two countries since the whole world now recognizes Eritrea to be an independent state and self governed country.

On today’s celebration, it is important to note that the occasion of Saint John the Baptist is based on the principle of honesty and integrity whereby in the modern world, these principles are defined as Transparency and Accountability respectively.

Apparently, these are values that have remained the driving force for every Eritrean and whereas most countries have time and again failed to embrace these key values, the State of Eritrea has remained an envy of many in these two areas.

The Eritrean story Brothers and Sisters, tells us that as Africans we can always embrace our own cultures and traditions to develop our respective countries and the continent at large rather than ape the patterns and behavior of our former colonial powers from the West.

Since Independence, Eritreans can never afford to forget the sacrifice of a dozen and a half of valiant Eritrean under the leadership of Hamid Idris Awate who took it upon themselves and were the first people to risk their lives and limb to trigger an all out armed resistance on 1st September 1961.

It is for this reason that September 1st remains a symbol of Eritrean struggle for independence signifying the day the first patriotic Eritreans fired the first bullet.

Known also as Bahti Meskerem in the local language, it further marks the day that heralded the absolute determination of the people of Eritrea to wage an armed struggle including whatever other means necessary to reclaim their national independence that was denied to them for over 20 years.

Today, Brothers and Sisters, Eritrea’s independence can be defined as a gusty begging in 1961, a happy and victorious ending on the Independence Day of 1st September and a tragic human consequence that is the Marty’s day June 20th.

However, these three holidays cannot be identified in isolation and although the people made history, the same history remains cruel as it cannot be erased.

This very day belongs to all Eritreans irrespective of their political or religious affiliation and it is a day that must be utilized to unite the country and foster the values of independence.

As we join you in celebrating this important day, it is my hope that the relationship between our two countries will be even stronger.

The move will result in more employment creation for our countries and subsequent improvement of the living standards of our people as well as the attainment of our ultimate aim as African countries which is self-reliance.

Once more, I thank Your Excellency for the honour you have bestowed upon me and the Kenyan workers by this invitation.

I wish you all the best as you celebrate this auspicious occasion.

I Thank you.

Dan Connell, who lobbied hard for economic sanctions against Eritrea and Eritreans (which is a human rights abuse and an act of aggression against the people), is now professing he cares about the welfare of Eritreans while working with the brutal Ethiopian regime that is notorious for its human rights abuses.

Dan Connell and Martin Plaut Embarrassed at SOAS London Seminar on Eritrea

By Alula Abraha,

The first of a four part series of seminars on “Eritrea” has just concluded. It was rather a seminar on mythical and imagined Eritrea. It was more of an Eritrea-bashing performance played by Dan Connell as a lead actor and the notorious Martin Plaut as a supporting actor. There were also a couple of stuntmen positioned across the room and were meant to gloss the old tired/expired propaganda circus. The whole exercise was desperate, futile and self-defeating that ended up banging itself against the wall.

With a touch of a typical old colonial attitude, the whole set-up of the seminar felt patronising, to say the least. One can’t help but feel that aura of a desperate attempt to re-create the old colonial mindset where a couple of “know-it all” old colonial-masters labouring to spin stories out of context (ignoring simple facts) and portray a message in a totally different light to suit their ulterior motive and/or their cheap political agenda. One way or another and in this day and age, the guys on the panel seem to be the last people on earth to think that anybody would fall for their newly coated, but old, trick. It was a futile exercise, doomed from the get go but I've to admit anyone would have fallen for that if that seminar was delivered a century ago.

Desmond Tutu had once described such an old trick that were used even by the western own missionaries pretending to be religious but only as a cover for the end product. Colonialism as an end that justified the means. Tutu described the manner the west had tricked the indigenous population like this:


But since ‘you can’t teach an old dog a new trick’, the same old trick is being recycled now-a-days. But one can’t discount the blending new breeds of dogs with brand new tricks.

However, in this day and age,  it’s a futile exercise simply because the digital and information age has closed down on the information gap. In her book titled “The Chavez Code“, Eva Gollinger couldn't have put it better when describing those new breeds of dogs. When comparing dirty jobs performed by the notorious CIA in the past with the ones now being out-sourced and done by a rather presentable looking creatures as those on the panel ( Pseudo-journalists, corrupt pressure groups and aid lords), she simply puts them as:  “the same old dog but with different collars.”

The other motive of the seminar seemed to want to create a momentum for the remaining three more parts to be performed by none other than known anti-Eritrean elements, particularly Meron Estifanos. The “I didn’t do it for you” author, Michella Wrong, is also lined up to do it for us this time. As for the Meron, What I would have advised her if I were her lawyer is …..”You Do not have to say anything but anything you say will be used as an evidence.”

From testimonies of evidences coming from many trafficked individuals as well as those held hostages in the concentration camps in Tigray that she seldom pretend to be shedding crocodile tears for, have been implicated her both directly and indirectly.  The whole exercise couldn't have gone more wrong after they had started off quite terribly. Even some gullible and naive Eritreans that had, in the past, given the benefit of the doubt to such a very organised and concerted propaganda campaign to blight the image of Eritrean have since switched sides simply because of the arrogance and attitudes that had stifled challenging views and facts that needed explanation.

The arrogance continues to this day where the organisers usually make a very predictable decision by parading only a group of known anti-Eritrean elements on the panel, who are hell bent on undermining and sabotaging any socio-economic progress made in the country by either lobbying for unfair and unjust sanction against Eritrea and its people or sleeping with the enemy that has made “regime change” as its #1 dream agenda.

The actors and actresses that play such a carefully orchestrated game have the support of successive US/UK regimes but absolutely rejected by Eritreans of all walks of life. In one particular cable correspondence exposed by Wikileaks, it revealed that the US willing to bankroll and support discussions aimed at targeting at the government of Eritrea and by extension the interest of its people using Eritrean faces if possible.

However, the books, “AGAINST ALL ODDS” and “I DIDN’T DO IT FOR YOU” published by Dan Connell and Michella Wrong, respectively, are believed to give these non-Eritrean faces at least the acceptance by the public courtesy of their books. Hence licensed as alternative faces to lead seminars. I wish they know there is one fact that “YOU ARE NOT A HERO LIFE”(U’R NT HERO 4LIFE).

Such business of misrepresentation of people goes back a long way in history. We’ve had similar groups of puppet entities even during the days of colonization as well as slavery before that. There were Africans who had assisted the Europeans in their notorious slave-trading business as they were collaborators during the colonial era and now during the neo-colonial days that vetted puppets leaders hired to serve the foreign policy interest of the three major Western nations (US, UK and France), all permanent members of the UNSC. Such collaborators are also no different from the inhuman and cruel human traffickers and organ traders that enriches themselves at the expense of our brothers and sisters suffering in Siani and Libya.

It has now become an open secret that the woyane concentration camps in Tigray had been the source of Eritrean and Ethiopian victims of human trafficking in Sinai and Libya. All the illegal human-trafficking ad organ trading business originates from the notorious concentration camps in the Tigray region of Northern Ethiopia. Under intense pressure and oppression, the very victims and family of victims have exposed to the world last October.

Such an elaborate and highly organised human trafficking business is long known of its origin by Meron herself but had chosen to play poker on the lives of thousands that she knew had been supplied from the very Tigray camps.  The mafiosi minority puppet regime of the Weyane in Ethiopia  and in collaboration with the self-styled “Eritrean opposition” groups, controlled by the former, are implicated in these sorts of hideous crimes that have always been supplying their Bedouin customers in Sinai deserts and Libya for ransom or for their body parts.

Now the cheeky part of the Dan con man’s seminar is that its title was on “migrating, migrants and migration“.  But what we witnessed was a relentless effort on the part of Dan-Plaut to absolve the criminals that are up to their neck deep in the business of trafficking innocent Eritreans from the “refugee camps” (aka 'concentrations camps') in Tigray.

Now let’s get down to the nitty-gritty part of the seminar last night.


Let’s see some of the issues that he chose to ignore, the wild claims he made and also the contradictions in his talk.



There were many more contradictions to mention but most of his errs were eloquently pointed out in the Question and Answer session.

After enduring more than an hour of his nonsensical marathon talk, full of an obvious agenda-driven propaganda, we were finally allowed to ask questions in the remaining 20 minutes of the session.
Two questions were asked before he replied.

Q1) The first Question emphasised on how he can justify ignoring two main facts that we all have at our disposal.

Q2)  Another young Eritrean man challenged Dan why he chooses to ignore the occupation of our land and why he’s in a business of blighting the image Eritrea. He also challenged all his wild allegations that directly contradicts with successive UNDP report on the MDG. Eritrea is one of the only 4 countries in the whole world that includes the Asia-pacific countries that has achieved most of the millennium development Goals and projected to meet the rest before the 2015 deadline. This is while we had been under illegal occupations held hostages in a no-peace no-war condition and coupled with illegal sanctions imposed against our people. However, despite US/UK pouring Billion$ every year almost to the tune of 70% of their annual budget, the puppet regime of Ethiopia has nothing to show for it. The UNDP has doubt if Ethiopia can meet even half of the MDGoals by 2050, let alone by 2015 deadline. It’s NOT like the aid agencies and poverty lords put it as if the donated money is being poured into a black-hole that has nothing to show for it. No!!… The fact is that the money is poured in only to pay for the protection of their investment assets (such as dispossessed fertile farm Lands, unregulated tannery factory, etc..) and their foreign policy interest there. Such business dealing is no different from that of an owner of an ordinary company in the west business hiring and paying security guards so as to make sure his properties, assets and business interest are looked after everyday after the owner goes back to his home and family after his day’s work at the company.

Q-3)  Next in line to ask a question was a rather older man with unbrushed goofy hair and a beards. His question was as messy as his appearance indeed. He asked the relationship between the history of human-smuggling business by EPLF during the struggle for independence. Don’t ask me which magic hat he brought out that sort of rabbit. But this is what we call in Tigrigna, “Mai zeyTa’Amet Hasot“. Very laughable that even Dan had to pass that sort of wild allegation. I think the Goofy headed geezer is the only person on earth to believe his own wild allegation.

Verdict: I think such an imagined wild allegation were meant to divert our attention away from the beefy part of the issue. That led to the 4th question where Martin Plaut’s dictatorship and intolerance of differing ideas had been exhibited.

Q-4)  A young Eritrean lady sitting at the back was given a chance to air her opinion. She did so quite eloquently by challenging Dan and the panel of deceit and attempt to spin stories out of context while ignoring glaring facts out there in the public domain. The dodgy tyrannical chair of the seminar, Martin Plaut, who had tried to lecture us on “tolerance of differing opinions and on democracy” before the start of the seminar, had himself been found to be the one who was unable to stomach the factual point that the Young lady (Saba) had put across the panelist that were already made to look so irrelevant and detached from reality. The hypocrite moderator suddenly decided to interrupt Saba while she began to substantiate her claim with powerful facts that made the panelist look like sitting ducks unable to challenge it.

After enduring Dan’s condescending and unsubstantiated lecture for over an hour, the least one expected from the hypocrites was to spare, at least, a minute to the young lady that was armed only with the truth and facts. True to his nature, the hypocrite chair asked for the security to eject Saba out of the seminar. All she had asked was to finish her points by backing it up with facts. A Nigerian brother came in and escorted her out but, in a typical Eritrean defiance against injustice, the rest of us in the seminar made sure we carry on Saba’s fight for justice to be heard.

Even looking back in history, it’s the hypocritical western regimes who are known for shifting the goal-post or not keeping their promise or true to bend the rule of law on several occasion. As for Eritreans, it has always been engrained in our culture to abide by the rules. “Ziban Higi” and “FeriHe AmlaKh” are examples of that is engrained in our culture. The same cannot be said for the western regimes who say one thing but does the opposite in a typical hypocritical attitude of  “DO WHAT I TELL YOU TO DO, NOT WHAT YOU SEE I DO.”

Q-5)  Another young man, a talented artist and web designer was given a chance to ask. He began by emphasizing that “we were all Saba” by saying that the vast majority of the people in the seminar and elsewhere share the same passion as well as the frustration of our sister that was unfairly provoked and expelled by the tyrannical chairmanship of Martin “Pol” Plaut himself.

The young man carried on from where our heroine Saba has been interrupted and finished what the panel didn’t want to hear. No sooner did “Pol Plaut” thought he had scored 1-0 victory against Eritrea than this young lad getting up and turning the scoreline in Eritrea’s favour. Eritrea lead 2-0 in an instant as its die-hard enemies certainly looked doomed so early in their own game. It’s not knew for Eritreans witnessing similar sorts of blatantly unjust act perpetrated against its people but every single one of it had been not only rejected by the people but also defeated all the successive unjust and illegal acts.

It might have taken us decades to undo the damage made by the John Foster Dullas’ arrogant US foreign policy interest at the expense of the very basic human and democratic right of the whole people of Eritrea but we have since learnt a lesson that similar nature of attack on the very basic rights of Eritreans are defended right on the spot within seconds.

Little did the little tyrannical Martin “Pol” Plaut know that he was actually producing dozens of Sabas at an instant at the very moment he expelled one Saba. Her crime was for emphasising on the insult to our intelligence as regard to the whole orchestrated presentation that is leading to their set agenda and a great travesty to the truth.  Her eloquently put question was too hot to handle for the panelists with a pre-meditated agenda. They were not there for discussion and not ready to hear opinions different from that of their set agenda to lead the meeting only in the manner they had wanted to do so. That’s is extremely dictatorial attitude and clearly and deliberately unaccommodating of different opinions. At least, the former Pseudo BBC journalist found out that his effort to silence Eritreans was proven futile, to say the least.

Then came one individual, who is known in the social networking sites as well on anti-Eritrean media circus almost on a full time basis with a single agenda of engaging in the business of bashing Eritrea at every opportunity. I’m afraid I won’t mention her name and there is no prize for guessing who the person is. She is always up and down, huffing and puffing and tooting her vuvuzela on any available medium making a fool of herself. She is also good at impersonating in order to threaten and/or blackmail people to submission. She had turned vicious by the day and there is no way that I would honour this wasted individual by mentioning the name here. Besides, I don’t quite remember the point she made. It’s too elementary and irrelevant to remember but I’m sure she is on record going lalalalla…..

So Q-6)????…..is skipped for reason of irrelevance.

Q-7)  Then came another young man (Mussie). He began by indicating that the content of the long talk given by Ato Dan and coated by ato Martin had indeed met his expectation. It was followed by a laughter following the young man’s comment that suggested the talk was simply and clearly an agenda-driven. Apart from being elementary, irrelevantly and totally detached from reality, the report contained several anomalies and contradictions and this young man eloquently pointed those contradiction to put the panel off guard and through their paces to explain themselves.

One of the point that Mussie had put across the panel was actually taken from Dan’s own statement where he claimed to have interviewed a young man who had done his national service duty in the very 1st round back in 1994/5 and admitted that the guy he claimed to have interviewed was relieved after his 18 months duty following completion of his duty as opposed to his suggestion that the “youth are now-a-days unable to accept the indefinite time limit on a NSP”.

But Mussie challenged him how it escaped Dan’s mind that the circumstances of the times he claimed in his alleged interview is totally opposite to that of the circumstances of that Eritrea is right now. We were in peace then while the NSP was conducted within the normal 18 month period but now our country is being deliberately held hostage to a ‘no-peace no war‘ situation by the US and their regional runner dogs. Mussie showed surprise how that sort of a world of difference in the country’s circumstances hadn’t even seemed to cross his mind. Or did he really take us for idiots that we wouldn’t notice that.

Besides, who the hell is he telling us that he actually care about our human-right more than we do for ourselves. If he had indeed cared, he would have, at least, included in his folders, the hours of interviews those “refugees” held in Tigray had given to ESAT, VOA and much later to the western funded media circus run by known anti-Eritrean elements like Meron et al only after their agenda to muffle their opinions had actually exposed them for who they really were indeed.

Q-8)  One other geezer in his late 50′s or early 60′s introducing himself as ‘Solomon’, had the floor. He made a big mess out of his opportunity by claiming (another wild one) that “we Eritrean don’t know anything about Badme that Shaebia had secretly agreed to offer Weyane in the early 80′s in return for allying against Jebha“. Another irrelevant fairytale story and irrelevant issue. As if we hadn't had enough of the hour long tiring propaganda rained on us by Dan himself, another fairytale and irrelevant story was added to it by another imbecile. But such a childish argument by an old childish geezer with a grudge didn't really seem to help the panel’s agenda. They looked so embarrassed as that sort of wild claim does actually contradict to what Dan Connell had written in his book titled “Against All Odds” in the early 90′s. But the foolish man is probably living in his own bubble, I don’t think he would get that he was the butt of the joke when the crowd laughed at his wild and irrelevant allegations. But One young lad was so irritated when this idiotic man had repeatedly tried to speak on our behalf. The young lad made a timely and brave intervention reminding the man to speak for himself and that nobody had given him the authority to speak on our behalf when he repeatedly kept on saying “we, we Eritreans……”

He also claimed that trafficking money is exchanged in Eritrea and that government officials drive land cruisers to prove that. The whole crowd laughed at another wild claim by this idiotic man. The guy must be a certified madman. But he wasn't without a support when a white lady sitting right to my left faintly whispering…..”It’s true” in what sounds as a support to his wild fairytale stories. It was only me sitting on her right and Yodit sitting on the right of me as well as perhaps Liya sitting in front of me that might have heard the timid whisper of support. But there was definitely also another one, her Ethiopian boyfriend sitting to her left that had obviously heard it.


I gave up after that and realised I was speaking with the wall. But I couldn’t help as I told her “what else does your gut feeling tell you?!”

From the look of it, it couldn’t have been her gutless “gut feeling” that had told her that by any stretch of imagination. She must have been brainwashed by her Weyane boyfriend sitting next to her. She can’t be blamed as she had probably grown up believing in fairytale stories that it ain’t a surprise that she would believe anything now until she finds another boyfriend telling her another fairy stories.  Her boyfriend had never raised his hands to ask a question at any point in the seminar nor had he tried to defend his girlfriend. He must be one of those weyane’s who had arrived in UK on a dodgy resettlement program pretending as Eritrean, while the real Eritreans are being trafficked, by the weyane and their SOLD OUT “Eritrean” puppets in exile, to the Bedouins in Sinai and Libya.

On the fairytale story that the old man put forth as deliberate distraction, Dan himself had sheepishly conceded saying that he had heard the allegations in the past but is yet to see any evidence to back up the allegation. That was like the déjà Vu “Badme, the deathbed of the opposition” all over again.

Q-9)  A lady by the name TirHas asked about the law of the sea and what the possibility of Ethiopia’s alleged claim to have access to the sea via Aseb as their own. I find that question totally irrelevant to the topic of discussion but again it was her right to ask any question she like. I think it was a wasted opportunity. No matter what the law of the sea says, the Weyane won’t abide by the rule of law just as it is still renegading on international law for nearly 12 years now by continuously being encouraged to occupy Eritrean  territory in violation of the final and binding EEBC ruling that has the EU, AU, UN and US as a guarantors of the agreement. You can’t possibly talk about rules of laws in the same breath as the Mafiosi entity of the Weyane and their handlers in Washington.

However Dan had never answered any of the questions quite convincingly, even on the wasted “Law of the sea“?!

Scene-2

Martin plaut had intervened by trying to lure Dan and lead him into his kind of wild discourse he had usually claim in some of his twitter-feeds by saying ….”how about Eritrean generals in the trafficking business.” But Dan said that he had also heard about it but he quickly added that he had nothing to collaborate that with concrete evidence. Martin “Pol” Plauts train hit the wall. His desperate last ditch effort to create traction to his already failed attempt to create a momentum via his twitter feeds full of his crazy lies and wild allegations, had finally hit the deck. I hope the London SOAS experience would serve as a lesson for Martin “Pol” Plaut as Canada had been for Dan CON-nell.

Dan must have learnt a lesson or two from Eritreans from his Canada seminar. So much so that I have seen a huge difference in him now and his previous Chatham House event on Eritrea back in December 2012. He seems to be realising that Eritreans ain't an easy push over and knows very well that Eritreans never kneel down except when praying and shooting. This London event is his second experience in a space of just over a year. He knows he has to be extra cautious when sitting in front of Eritrean and present wild fairy tale stories as if true.

“Evidence” is the word he used more often  even though some of his “evidence” in his power-point presentation were his own, as an interviewer. However, even that cannot be verified by a third party nor by the party that has allegedly been interviewed and on what condition. He can’t expect us to buy the interviews he presented, particularly the ones said he conducted with the so-called “refugees” held hostages in the Cash-cow camps of Mai-Aini and Adu-Harush in Tigray Camps. He can’t ignore the fact that he can’t get their true feeling while being interviewed under siege and under the prying eyes of the weyane securities that were giving Dan CON-nell protection and logistics. That is why the CON-nell had continuously chosen to ignore the true opinions of those same “refugees” through extensive interviews they had done by phone with VOA, ESAT and even on the EU based “Radio-Erena”. How is it possible that he ignores those interviews given in more freedom than those given to him under duress. It’s all an exercise of spinning stories to serve their cheap political agenda.

There was another issue that Dan and Pol-Plaut showed disagreement in public. Dan advocated for national service program that helps builds infrastructure and public services “but it has to be limited” he said. He also hoped that the US would re-introduce such a program back in his own country of the USA. Pol-Plaut intervened and expressed his disagreement on the national service program in Eritrea and on Dan’s suggestion in his own country. Pol-Plaut’s disagreement was in accommodated quite “democratically” while his earlier action against Saba’s earlier disagreement only helped expose Pol-Plaut’s inner tyrannical character.

After all Who is potty Martin “Pot” Plaut to decide what is good for us?! He can have his opinion but he should remember that nobody in Eritrea takes notice of his idiotic self-serving opinions on Eritrea and its people. A typical mentality that still seems to have that lingering colonial mindset.

Scene-3 (an informal chat over a nice cup of tea after the seminar)

There was a heated debate everywhere.  Yacob and myself were talking to a lady that was responsible for organising the seminar, and on his way out, Dan rudely interrupted our conversation asking if he had satisfactorily answered our question. I said that he didnt even attempt to get anywhere near answering the question and I also mentioned to him that he had similarly evaded my question over a year ago during his Chatham house talk on Eritrea.

He shrugged his shoulder when I told him it was the same issues raised by Saba that he evaded today. But the loner, Pol-Plaut, that nobody wants to talk to tried to drag his mate saying that “they are going out for a drink”. But, by then, I had him cornered on another controversial topic that he had touched in his presentation about the Weyane camp of “Shimelba“.  His claim that it had since been demolished for reasons not known to himself during the seminar. But he had also tried to suggest that the refugees there were “mostly resettled” in US. I told him that his claim was a blatant lie probably trying to lure more Eritreans on a false “dream“. I told him that he seems to be the last person in that seminar to know the reason why.

When I told him that the the proximity to the birder with Eritrea and that 50-200 Eritreans were slipping back to Eritrea every night under the cover of darkness following their discovery that they were duped. The Shimelba camp was almost deserted that the Weyane had decided to close it down simpy because it was not profitable and causing a great PR disaster to the US and their weyane puppet ally. I told him that, unlike his skewed self-serving interviews, my source of the info is the voice of the Eritrean themselves whose revelation is out there in the public domain. I had already told him that he was ignorant of that for deficiency of the Tigrigna language. Hence being the last one to know the very fact that he has to wallow in his own self-serving interviews (if we have to actually call it an interview for a start).

However, after he heard me, Dan surprised me by pulling out a new rabbit out of an empty hat. He said quite enthusiastically pointing his finger at me, “But but but, there is another reason for the demolishing of the Shimelba camp” He said. Unable to wait to hear it, I asked, “What is it?!” He said, “I have heard that they are using the area as a strategic place for the military training of the Eritrean opposition.”

After trying to pull my leg with another new bait dangling for mento bite, I laughed my head off thinking to myself, “pull the other one!!!”

I reminded him that he claimed two reasons for the demolishment of the Shimelba camp. One was that he had no idea but the other one was that most of them were resettled in the US. Big lol. But I asked him why he didn’t mention that in his long speech at the seminar. He shrugged his shoulder again. I challenged him if he thinks that it would upset his new weyane friends to exposing that. Not the fake strategic military reason for shimelba’s obliteration but the real reason. Honestly speaking, I really get to like this Con artist, Dan CONnell. He is, not only, arrogant but also very idiotic to believe that Eritrean would fall for his trick, much less to rise up for the cheap (but juicy) baits that he usually dangles at.

Scene 4

We met Saba after that and spoken to a couple of the securities that were used to eject our sister. We explained to them of the whole scenario in the right perspective and in context. One was particularly very conscious and conscience African brother you can feel his blood boiling when he found out that their service is being used to aid and abet the policies of the neo-colonisation. He suggests to me I see this video titled “12 days in slavery” to understand more about the modern day slavery that is still going on and affecting you and me”. He is an ardent reader and I had suggested to him to read Kwame Nkrumah’s book titled “NEO-CONLONISATION, THE LAST STAGE OF IMPERIALISM” published in 1965 while he was still president of Ghana. I told him that everything he puts there is happening now like a prophesy that the CIA and the MI6 had to overthrow him from power the following year. I told him that our feeling for Saba today is the same feeling for the Ghanaian almost 50 years ago. He got ejected (overthrown) because of opinions he stated in his book that the former colonial masters (now neo-colonial master) couldn’t tolerate in the same way that the dictatorial chairmanship of Martin “Pot” Plaut decision to eject our sister just because he can’t stomach the truth in her opinion. Out struggle began in the seminar and continued after it and will remain continued no matter where, when and how.

Scene-0

This scene is from Dan CONnell’s previous seminar he conducted on Eritrea in Chatham House. I’ll present it as I had put it in my diary then.
Enjoy the drama!

Scene-0 (back to the future)

In the run up week to the 12th anniversary of the signing of the comprehensive peace agreement, earlier this month, I received information that the Chatham house was inviting Dan Connell to speak on Eritrea on Thursday, the 13th of December. As usual, I booked my name online. When I got there a little late from work, the man looked through the list but couldn’t find my name. I showed a proof of my booking from  my phone right there and then. He couldn’t deny the confirmation I had received was from his own email. The event organiser at Chatham House, Tigist Amare, was standing there listening to our conversation. In fact the original invitation was sent to be by Tigist. This time, he gave me another excuse. He said, “it’s only for policy makers and strictly for invited individuals only”.

I was buffled. I told him, ” it’s unacceptable and it ain’t my first time attending. I had even attended event on Somalia issues let alone on issues concerning my own country.” I asked him, “How is it possible that me as an Eritrean is not allowed to attend on issues concerning my own country while non-Eritreans can?!”

He tried to assure me that he will invite me on another occasion. I told him it was scandalous and unacceptable and I was about to go back but the man relented and finally allowed me at his own discretion. From the way he was talking to me, I assumed, up until that point I walked into the seminar and took my seat, that there ain’t any Eritrean in there. How wrong and naive I was?!

Apart from the odd foreigners, the place was full of full-time league of Eritrean quisling (if I can kindly borrow the term from Sophie TM). I was so enraged at the ploy to keep us out while stuffing the event with anti-Eritrean elements including two Ethiopian Embassy stuffs of which one is named Berhane. The only hagerawi that was in Dan’s Chatham house  seminar that I can identify at the time was our own Ambassador Tesfamichalel (wedi Gerahtu).

When I later meet the eye of the man that tried to stop me at the door (despite the fact that I had booked my place in advance) I shook my head at him in disgust. He knew why. At the end of the meeting, I demanded explanation but typical to an English manner, the staff there unreservedly apologised for their unprofessional conduct and the selective invitation of only anti-Eritrean elements. I don’t think the apology was genuine but it worked to calm me down. There was no doubt in my mind that it was a deliberate ploy to keep us away on issues concerning our country. I later learnt that a couple of young Eritreans were also deliberately turned away.

The major scandal apart from Dan Connell talking incoherently and irrelevantly, shunning out the issue at hand while busy peddling on hearsays and  exaggerating, he made a lot of silly remarks that only helps expose himself. Chief amongst his hateff-teffs were when he made his opinion on the rumoured arming of civilians up to the age of 70. He made the people laugh when he said he knows somebody’s grandmother that is also armed. It was a Typical sensationalist diversion from issues that matters most. Besides, knowing he is from a country awashed with fire-arm,  I- for one- hadn’t expected him to look surprised on this issue of arming Eritreans with arms to protect themselves and the villages. Actually, it seemed to have clashed with his wild propaganda line that goes, “Eritreans are against their government.”  Even, for argument sake, if his arrogant claim were to be taken for granted, how does it add up that a government would arm it’s own enemy?!

He also speculated and mumbled at why 10 years after EEBC ruled that Badme is Eritrean, Isaias Afewerki didn't choose to attack Ethiopia to liberate the occupied Badme.

During the Question and Answer session, I had to make an intervention and was given the chance by the then chair, Dr Reed. I said that that was said could have been challenged but that it would only be a disservice to the main underlying issue that is deliberately and conveniently being swept under the carpet.

“12 years ago, yesterday on the 12/12/12, the two countries signed a comprehensive peace agreement on the final & binding nature of EEBC ruling. The guarantors at the time, the EU, AU, UN and Madeline Albeight on behalf of the US were present and was agreed that the party that refuses to abide would be, at least, economically and diplomatically sanctioned. It’s scandalous that Nobody had raised the issue of the responsibilities failed by the main player, the US in particular that is holding the region hostage to a no-peace no-war situation.  In fact, despite the fact that Ethiopia has, for over a decade, held peace in the region hostage, it wasn’t sanctioned. To the contrary, the party that accepted the ruling, Eritrea, is the one that had been sanctioned while the regional brat is being spoilt with over 70% of its budget every year,…. besides enjoying diplomatic cover by successive US and UK regimes.

Our Ambassador also had a chance and eloquently put everything into the right perspective that refuted Dan-Connell’s talk as an absolute disservice to the truth.

What had really irritated me the most was the Weyane embassy official huffing and puffing in his desperate effort to recycle the dead Al-shebab propaganda. They found out that they were indeed the only one to mention it during the whole seminar and seem to be the only ones in the room wanting to believe that tired propaganda.

Aluta Continua!!!
Awet n’Hafash

__________________________________________________________

Video of Saba Gebregiorgis confronting Dan Connell and Martin Plaut:

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov

Russia Invites Eritrean Foreign Minister

Eritrean Foreign Minister Osman Saleh to visit Russia 16-18 February at the invitation of his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov, a senior government spokesman said.

The two sides are expected to discuss international and regional views, conflicts in Africa and the Middle East besides signing cooperation agreements, the official added.

Russia's role in the Horn of Africa has been limited since the fall of the Soviet Union. Its attempts at stepping up its relations in the region hasn't always had the political will from the Kremlin.

But with coveted resources in the HoA, Russia says its now aiming to increase its relations by giving a fresh impetus to their efforts intended to secure it's long-term interests in the region.

Eritrea's abundant mineral and potash resources, coupled with its favorable mining laws, is an area of investment the Kremlin is rumored to be interested in.

Eritrean Peoples Liberation Front fighters raise their Kalashnikovs in celebration - 1991 - Credit: Dan Connell

Pearl Of The Red Sea: The Very  Gateway To Independence

By Rahel Asgedom,

If there had been a strong hold in Eritrea, political and military officials of the colonial Ethiopian Derg had boasted of, it was the port city Massawa. The realization that surrendering Massawa would as much likely be as taking their own lives had compelled the Derg regime to outwit a plan against conclusive defeat, they guarded it in a way they believed would be more dependable to securing their hold. There was a consolidated coastal front line stretching west of Massawa from Figret to Emberemi and thence to the North. Still, in Massawa and its vicinities, there were three defense strong holds mostly cemented fortifications sheltering even tanks and artilleries. Derg deployed a huge army in those defense lines, within Massawa and by the sea.

The sixth infantry and the third motorized divisions, additional mechanized brigades and almost the entire Ethiopian naval forces warmed all over the area equipped with hundreds of tanks, tens of cannons, rocket launchers and other military hard wares as well as warships and boats. The setup added to it the imposing terrain was quite a formidable challenging to be faced with . Having penetrated the first fort of the enemy, the EPLF forces marched forward across the plainest lowlands. To enter through the only passage of the city into Massawa, it was imperative for the Eritrean liberation forces to confront the enemy forces with an overwhelming victory at the narrow Bridge of Segalet, which is surrounded on both sides by the sea.

Despite the surprising victories inother areas, for the Derg enclosed Massawa with heavy arms and enormous force, it was beyond any speculations of not only the regime but also the Eritreans in Massawa that the EPLF could indeed liberate the city. The historic heroism ‘nothing ventured, nothing gained’ to uproot the enormous enemy force in a short period might have seemed a miraculous determination.Having provisioned strong moral commitment and sophisticated weaponry seized from enemy forces, the extraordinary devotion demonstrated by the freedom fighters with amplest popular support plus the special military skills gained through training and experience to liberate Massawa nineteen years ago forced the Derg army to vacate the city within two and a half days. Operation Fenkil,which pervaded an indomitable spirit capturing imaginations of the Eritrean people most, was thus launched against the Derg in three directions all unawares.

North of the front on the Asmara-Massawa road, the first direction of the surprising attack in the west targeted to move forward storming the military posts in Figret and throttling the enemy’s militarism at Gahtelay on the Asmara road. Second direction of the attack was in a position to capture the main road through May Atal and turn east to Massawa in the face of any opposition, thereby breaking through the center of the enemy’s fortified strongholds on the hills around Seker. The third flank of the attack deployed in the East from the coastal areas to smash the forts and strong holds stretching north from Emberemi and surge to victory of the port city in the North.

Thursday, February 8, 1990, at 1:00 AM, EPLF forces heralded the launch of the historic operation of 72-hours by way of the western wing to liberate Massawa. Within the early three or four hours of the battle, having managed to crush the paralytic attempts of enemy forces,the western wing of EPLF forces captured seven tanks, five BM-21 launcher rockets, sub machine guns as well as other military hardware and seized control of all the camps around at daybreak. Laying the first front line of the enemy in ruins,liberators held many personnel of the sixth division – including the adjutant Colonel – in captivity.Providing momentum for the operation in opposition to any resistance, the EPLF forces removed the enormous Ethiopian forces from the second wing of the front line in the bloodshed around Seker, May Atal and Degoli at a price. After a reorganizing break,liberation forces at the second night of the coherent attack routed the huge enemy forces out of their strongholds into Massawa. The third wing of the attack in the battle, flanked by the infantry and mechanized units jointly with the young navy, winged along the coastal areas in the east against the enemy’s military formation, which was armed with massive tanks and convoys.

Thanks to the thunderbolt freedom fighters, the western wing reached the gates of Massawa by Gergsum in the same breath. In the east the young naval forces of the EPLF attacked the enemy forces without giving a break causing the heaviest loss since the launch of the operation.The adequately resourced Ethiopian army with necessary supplies and sophisticated military assets could not trounce the newborn navy of the EPLF, though. On February 10,1990 early Saturday morning, the attack which was launched through Forto-Massawa flared up into the inner city.

Hence, they first occupied Edaga and next conquered Salina, the place where feasibility appeared unattainable in 1978, subsequently reached Girar within a short span of time. After an efficient speedy but inevitable bloody battle, naval base, Twalet as well as Massawa through and through along with the territorial waters were liberated.Indeed, the operation, beyond being a sweeping victory to the Pearl City, was a key success to Eritrea throughout that set the nation free from the clutches of consecutive colonizers once and for all.

During the Operation Fenkel, more than 80 tanks, 7 BM-21 launcher rockets, 10 anti tank guided missals,sub-machine guns and artilleries were captured. Moreover, around 8 thousand Ethiopian soldiers along with a number of officers were succumbed under the doughty EPLF. Napalms and cluster bombs rained down on the civilian people by the Ethiopian soldiers as to avenge their shameful defeat. The vast number of the retreating and fleeing Ethiopian soldiers revealed twilight moments of the down fall of the regime.

The unparalleled Operation Fenkel dawned good prospects and uplifted the hope of every citizen towards a free state. During the operation,five armed Ethiopian huge war ships were captured and turned against the Derg aligning with the EPLF naval force. Despite Russian-made war planes: Mig-21 and two Mig-23 were dispatched in a bid to give help for the enemy forces, the EPLF anti-air craft unit shot down both.Above 10 infantry and mechanized brigades were totally destroyed. In these vast battles 200 tanks, from about 85 to 100 different kinds of cannons and other weapons were launched together erupting like a volcanic outburst, ranging the magnitude of the battle than any land of Eritrea had ever attested.

The scope of the battle and the military formation of the enemy forces during the Operation Fenkel extended from Morara, Bri-Gemal, Tsehaf-Lam, Kudo, Afgergr around the green-belt region under the 69th Birgade of the 10th division to the right, to the left the Shabah plain sunder the 113th brigade, in the northeast close to Kentibay under the 83rd brigade, and 500th brigade near Emberemi around the area which they referred to as 101 kilometer road representing the left flank in an area of about 1560 Km2. Asregards the mechanized resource:302 motorized Brigade in the island, the tank-armed 4th Brigade from Massawa to Goroyto, 29th mechanized Brigade near May-Weuy and Gahtelay, and 27th mechanized Brigade stretched out around Foro. Apart from the aforementioned resources, the infantry brigade 21 in the areas around Adi-Ile, other infantry and mechanized units of the Dergue, the 66th and 167th battalions of the 10th division were among the units that served reservedly.

Confrontation in this enormous battle by breaking through the strongholds of the enemy that were armed with about 180 tanks was nothing but an invincible bravery. However, the EPLF had utilized sophisticated military plans to win the battle. The sincere secret of the success was just the hunger for freedom and disciplined stoicism of the people envisioning to secure independence of the nation, which Eritrea has been deprived of for decades due to injustice and colonization. That’s why the Fenkel operation, through its astounding victory, managed to capture minds of not only friends of the EPLF and its foes but also the whole world. It did not at the same time reveal only the definite defeat of the Ethiopian regime, but also demonstrated the ultimate goal of the long and bitter struggle for independence. It only took months for complete liberation of Eritrea upon successful accomplishment of the operation, realizing the dream that seemed distant.

Operation Fenkel has been commemorated for the last twenty three years on the 2nd week of February with honor in a cordial mood for the history it bears. Thus, the occasion should not be confined to an event of exuberant celebration, but must be a juncture to renew our commitments to safeguard the sovereignty and peace of the country. Through the nation building campaign, the Eritrean people have managed to achieve cures for the former colonial legacies of Massawa, if not thoroughly, but mostly, replacing the ruined image of the port city. Today Massawa has many modern and comfortable residential complexes, a big national air port,modern port, great infrastructures, hotels and many recreational cafes.

Asmara's Mai Jah Jah Fountain is receiving renovation worth US$532,000

Mai Jah Jah Fountain in Asmara is Under Renovation 

In line with the government's ongoing efforts to refurbish parts of Asmara, state media disclosed Asmara's Mai Jah Jah Fountain and its environs are being renovated at a cost of more than 8 million Nakfa (US$532,000).

According to Abraham Haile, Administrator of Geza-Banda sub-zone, construction of walls, installation of electricity, water and other lines has already been completed. He added the placement of public toilets, water reservoir and other amenities are underway.

In an effort to make the site green, the coordinator of the project, Yosef Tewolde, said a number of trees and flowers would be planted in the area along with the erecting of park seats, solar energy-powered light poles and other decorations.

Similarly, in December, a community recreational center costing 6 million Nakfa was constructed in the Gejeret Administrative area of Asmara, while a park in the Edaga-Hamus sub-zone of the city received renovations costing 5.5 million Nakfa.

The Gejeret recreational center features a new water fountain, park seats, solar powered light poles, landscaping and public restrooms, while the Edaga-Hamus park included similar amenities, and is slated to receive a cafeteria and a public restroom.

Renovation of Mai Jah Jah is underway:



Gejeret Community Recreational Center in Asmara:

Eritrean Foreign Minister Osman Saleh

Eritrean Foreign Minister Arrives in Egypt

Eritrean Foreign Minister Osman Saleh arrived in Egypt for a one-day visit on Sunday, according to diplomatic sources.

During the visit, Saleh will hold talks with several Egyptian officials on the latest developments in the Horn of Africa, including the controversial Ethopian Renaissance Dam.

The visit comes just three weeks after a high-level Egyptian delegation visited Asmara and held talks with President Isaias Afwerki about regional issues and enhancing bilateral relations.