Growing Unrest In The African Country Of Eritrea

DW: Rare protests reported in Eritrea with 28 deaths

Several people have reportedly been killed and dozens arrested in Eritrea's capital. Protests are rare in Eritrea, home to one of the world's most repressive regimes.

At least 28 people have been killed and dozens more arrested in rare protests that rocked the Eritrean capital, a member of an opposition coalition claimed on Wednesday.

"The magnitude of the protests was very huge," said Nasredin Ali of the Red Sea Afar Democratic Organization, based in neighboring Ethiopia.

The deaths, arrests and scale of the protests in the reclusive and tightly controlled country could not be confirmed.

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More News On The Growing Unrest In The African Country Of Eritrea

Gunfire heard in Eritrea's capital as protests break out, U.S. embassy says -- Reuters
28 protesters killed in Eritrea, opposition group says -- CBC/AP
Eritrea opposition: Security forces kill 28 protesters -- Al Jazeera
Eritrean Police Reportedly Open Fire on Protesters, Killing 28 -- Sputnik
Eritrea protest aftermath: military makes arrests, internet cut reported -- Africa News
Reports of protester deaths after security clashes show tensions brewing in isolated Eritrea -- Quartz

U.N. Accuses Eritrean Leaders Of Committing Crimes Against Humanity

Al Jazeera: Eritrea commits crimes against humanity, UN says

UN investigation reports a litany of crimes committed in Eritrea since 1991, including enslavement, rape and murder.

Eritrea's government is guilty of committing crimes against humanity since independence a quarter-century ago with up to 400,000 people "enslaved", the UN said on Wednesday.

The crimes committed since 1991 include imprisonment, enforced disappearance, extrajudicial killings, and rape and murder, said the United Nations Commission of Inquiry (COI) on human rights.

The forced labour of military conscripts is also a major problem in the country, the UN said.

"We think that there are 300,000 to 400,000 people who have been enslaved," chief UN investigator Mike Smith told journalists in Geneva.

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WNU Editor: Talk about timing .... UN calls for Eritrea leaders to be tried for crimes against humanity, as EU mulls migrant deal (The Telegraph).

More News On The U.N. Accusing Eritrean Leaders Of Committing Crimes Against Humanity

Eritrea has committed widespread crimes against humanity, says UN -- The Guardian
Send Eritrea to International Criminal Court, UN group says -- AP
Eritrean government systematically committed crimes against humanity -- DW
Crimes Against Humanity Committed in Eritrea, UN Commission Says -- Bloomberg
UN estimates 300,000-400,000 enslaved in Eritrea -- CBC/Reuters

Attempted Coup In Eritrea Fails -- A News Roundup

No Sign Of Eritrea Mutineers As Calm Returns -- Reuters

(Reuters) - Dissident Eritrean soldiers who had seized the information ministry were gone on Tuesday and calm returned to the capital, Asmara, an Eritrean envoy and Western diplomat said.

The soldiers took over the ministry on Monday to demand the release of thousands of political prisoners, a sign of a deepening rift between some factions of the military and the secretive country's president, Isaias Afewerki.

Eritrea's envoy to South Africa said there had been a "small incident" at the ministry but that order had been restored.

"The situation in Asmara and elsewhere is no different from any other day," Salih Omar Abdu told Reuters. State television was back on air. Its main headline was heavy snow in Paris.

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More News On The Attempted Coup In Eritrea

Eritrea: Asmara calm after 'information ministry raid' -- BBC
A day after unrest reported in Eritrea, calm returns; ambassador denies coup attempt -- Washington Post/AP
'All calm,' says Eritrea after apparent insurrection -- Deutsche Welle
Eritrea 'calm' after mutiny -- News 24
Coup Attempt By Rebel Soldiers Is Said To Fail In Eritrea -- New York Times
Eritrea Coup Attempt Fails -- Newser
Eritrean Ambassador Dismisses Coup Reports; Soldiers Retreat -- Bloomberg Businessweek
Eritrea Rocked by Possible Coup Attempt -- Wall Street Journal
Eritrean soldiers said to storm ministry; diplomat denies 'coup' -- L.A. Times
Eritrean troops besiege mutineers in Asmara: diplomats -- Al Arabiya
In Eritrea, Whispers Of A Quiet Protest Challenge Years Of Suppression -- International Business Times

Coup Attempt Fails In Eritrea

Coup Attempt By Rebel Soldiers Is Said To Fail In Eritrea -- New York Times

GARSEN, Kenya — Eritrea, a sliver of a nation in the Horn of Africa that is one of the most secretive and repressive countries in the world, was cast into confusion on Monday after mutinous soldiers stormed the Ministry of Information and took over the state-run television service, apparently in a coup attempt.

According to several people with close contacts inside Eritrea, the coup attempt failed, with government troops quelling the would-be rebellion and no one rising up in the streets. But many analysts said it was only a matter of time before President Isaias Afwerki, Eritrea’s brash and steely leader for the past 20 years, is confronted again — and most likely from within.

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My Comment: This was a small rebellion that was quickly quashed by soldiers loyal to the government. But this is a sign that there is dissent in the arm forces, and that after years of misrule some are now speaking out.

This is a developing news story .... we will update it as more information and news is released.

Coup Attempt In Eritrea?

Eritrean Troop Movement Sparks Coup Fears -- Financial Times

Hundreds of soldiers are reported to have surrounded the ministry of information in the Eritrean capital of Asmara, sparking fears of a coup in the one-party pariah state in the Horn of Africa.

The soldiers forced the director of state television to make an announcement, an Eritrean intelligence official told Reuters. “The soldiers have forced him to speak on state TV, to say the Eritrean government should release all political prisoners,” the source said on condition of anonymity.

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More News On Eritrea

Eritrean tanks surround mutineers -- News24
Eritrean troops besiege ministry after mutiny -- AFP
Eritrea: 'Troops deployed' in Asmara -- BBC
Eritrean troops besiege Ministry of Information -- Deutsche Welle
Military coup may be underway in Eritrea -- Global Post
Eritrea: Soldiers Surround Information Ministry Amid Coup Fears -- IBTimes
Eritrean troops lay siege to ministry -- Reuters
Dissident Eritrean troops demand release of political prisoners -- Reuters
Attempted military coup in Eritrea shuts down state TV: reports -- Al Bawaba

Eritrea, Another Failed State In Africa

Eritrea, The Portrait Of A Failed State At Odds With Neighbours -- The Nation

Ten days before Christmas in 2009, the Eritrean national team arrived in Nairobi to take part in a regional football tournament.

After losing 4-0 to Tanzania, officials noticed something was amiss 30 minutes after the match.

Twelve members of the team disappeared after the final whistle and told Kenyan officials that they had no intention of returning home. They were granted asylum.

The pattern repeated itself last month when the Eritrean club Red Sea went to Tanzania to take part in a regional club championship.

Thirteen players disappeared from the camp and asked to be granted refugee status.

This time, they were not so lucky because the Tanzanian officials rejected their bid to remain in the country.

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More News On Eritrea

Kenya-Eritrea row over arms to Somalia grows -- Reuters
Kenya raises concerns Eritrea arming Somalia’s al-Shabab insurgency with secret flights -- Washington Post/AP
Eritrea raising money in Canada, financing terrorists to attack Canada -- National Post
Eritrea terms as 'unfortunate' Kenya Al-Shabaab comments -- Africa Review
Eritrea: Reporters Without Borders' Position On Reports That Swedish-Eritrean Journalist May Have Died in Detention -- All Africa

Is Eritrea Becoming A State Sponsor Of Terror?

Exclusive: Eritrea behind AU summit attack plot: U.N. report -- Real Clear World/Reuters

NAIROBI (Reuters) - Eritrea was behind a plot to attack an African Union summit in Ethiopia in January and is bankrolling al Qaeda-linked Somali rebels through its embassy in Kenya, according to a UN report.

A U.N. Monitoring Group report on Somalia and Eritrea said the Red Sea state's intelligence personnel were active in Uganda, South Sudan, Kenya and Somalia, and that the country's actions posed a threat to security and peace in the region.

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More News On Eritrea

UN report accuses Eritrea of plotting to bomb AU summit -- BBC
Eritrea accused of planning terrorist attacks on its neighbours -- The Telegraph
Eritrea behind AU summit attack plot - U.N. report -- Reuters
Eritrea plotted to attack leaders at summit -- Washington Times
Eritrea planned massive bomb attack on African Union summit, UN says -- The Guardian
Eritrea accused of planning major bomb attack on African Union summit -- Global Post
Ethiopia and UN accuse Eritrea of backing Al Shabaab -- Africa Report
Factbox: U.N. Monitoring report on Somalia, Eritrea -- Reuters

The Case Of Four British ex-Marines Held in Eritrea

Four British Ex-Marines Held For Two Months In Eritrea Accused Of Spying -- Daily Mail

Four former Royal Marines have been in captivity in Eritrea for eight weeks after being accused of spying.

The men were arrested in the Horn of Africa after a gun battle erupted when they attempted to escort a merchant vessel through pirate-infested waters.

Two of the guards attempted to escape on a skiff but were seized off the Eritrean coast and left without food and water for a day on a small island before being taken back to the mainland to be imprisoned.

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My Comment: Talk about being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Is Eritrea The Next Failed State?

Eritrea May Become Failed State, Warns Think Tank -- BBC

Eritrea may become a failed state if the world community fails to engage with the Horn of Africa nation, a think-tank has warned.

The International Crisis Group says Eritrea is under severe stress, with the economy in free fall.

Its authoritarian political system is haemorrhaging legitimacy, it says.

But an adviser to Eritrea's president rejected the findings, telling the BBC the country had made tremendous progress since it was formed in 1993.

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Update #1: Report: Eritrea May Become Failed State -- Voice of America
Update #2: A state of siege -- The Economist

My Comment: Another African failure that is now starting to look to the West for a bailout. I would normally advise on ignoring such a country, but considering its strategic location on the Red Sea .... such an option will probably not be advisable.

Eritrea, Another Failed State in Africa

As Thousands Flee Regime, Eritrea Goes It Alone -- Washington Post

Facing the prospect of U.N. sanctions and increasing 'brain drain,' young nation's authoritarian president chooses defiance.

As thousands flee regime, Eritrea goes it alone
Facing the prospect of U.N. sanctions and increasing 'brain drain,' young nation's authoritarian president chooses defiance

"Leave us alone," said the commandingly tall former guerrilla leader who became Eritrea's first and only president in 1993, after a 30-year struggle for independence from Ethiopia. "We don't want to be pushed around."

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My Comment: Sighhh .... another typical paranoid African dictator, who installs a centrally controlled command economy that is regulated by his government on a micro level. To insure that he stays in power, a police state is then imposed on the population, and threats of war and/or supporting wars in neighboring countries becomes their central foreign policy initiative.

The only good thing that I can say of this situation .... is that this dictator is not asking the West for handouts .... yet.

Fear And Secrecy Cloak Eritrea, Africa's Hermit Nation

From McClatchy News:

ASMARA, Eritrea — In this lonely corner of the world, the first sign of distress is the luggage. When one of the few international flights that are still operating here touched down one recent afternoon, the returning passengers emerged from baggage claim as if from a big shopping trip. Old metal trolleys squealed under the weight of mundane items: tires, a laptop computer, tubs of detergent and duffel bags crammed so tightly with food that tin cans bulged through the fabric.

The needs are acute in Eritrea, a narrow shard of sand and rock along the Red Sea that's presided over by one of Africa's most secretive regimes. As its quixotic experiment in economic self-reliance falters, the Ohio-sized country of 5 million has slipped into its deepest political isolation in its 16 years of independence.

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My Comment: Another example of what happens when mad men take over an African country.

Clinton Threatens Eritrea Action

From BBC:

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has warned that the US will "take action" against Eritrea if it does not stop supporting militants in Somalia.

She said after talks with Somali President Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed in Kenya's capital, Nairobi, that Eritrea's actions were "unacceptable".

She also said the US would expand support for Somalia's unity government.

Eritrea denies supporting Somalia's al-Shabab militants, who are trying to overthrow Somalia's government.

Al-Shabab is growing in strength and 250,000 Somalis have fled their homes in fighting between militants and government forces over the past three months.

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My Comment: Eritrea is not paying attention to Hillary Clinton. Their allies are winning in Somalia, and what the U.S. says will not be taken seriously.

However .... if the U.S. starts to send weapons to Ethiopia and to the central government in Somalia .... that will get their attention.

US Threatens Eritrea Over Support For Al-Qaeda-Linked Terrorists

The US has warned Eritrea to withdraw support for a terrorist group linked to al-Qaeda

From The Telegraph:

The US has warned Eritrea it risks American military action for its support for a Somalian terrorist group linked to a plot to attack President Barack Obama.

The Red Sea dictatorship has drawn the wrath of America by backing extremist Islamic groups in Somalia as part of a proxy war with Ethiopia, its former ruler.

It champions al-Shabaab, an al-Qaeda-linked group that American intelligence believes has trained a dozen of its own citizens to carry out attacks in the US.

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UN Demands Eritrea Pullback From Dijbouti Border

From WTOP:

UNITED NATIONS (AP) - The U.N. Security Council on Wednesday unanimously demanded that Eritrea quickly pull its troops back from the Djibouti border and acknowledge the dispute with its Horn of Africa neighbor in an important area overlooking critical Red Sea shipping lanes.

In June, the Security Council condemned Eritrea for launching an attack against the tiny port nation of Djibouti, a key U.S. ally in the war on terrorism, which the U.S. said left 44 Djiboutian soldiers dead and many more missing.

The council had called for a cease-fire and urged the two countries to withdraw their forces from the border. Djibouti did, but Eritrea did not.

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Iran Deploys Troops, Ballistic Missiles To Eritrea

Eritrean President Isayas Afwerki and Iranian President Mahmud Ahmadinejad

From The Cutting Edge:

Iranian ships and submarines have deployed an undisclosed number of Iranian troops and weapons at the Eritrean port town of Assab, according to opposition groups, foreign diplomats, and NGOs in the area.

The city of Assab sits at the Horn of Africa in the Arabian Sea. As such, Assab offers a strategic position as the world nervously eyes the precarious routes through which a seaborne oil traverses daily.

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My Comment: Iranian troops and missile systems based in an African country that overlooks the shipping lanes from the Suez Canal to the Gulf of Aden. This is an ominous development that many in the western media have so far ignored.

The intent is obvious, to intercept oil tankers and all other vital shipping that come from Saudi Arabia and Egypt.