| Eritrean-ethiopian War |
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BACKGROUND AND INITIAL ATTACK Following independence, the two neighbours disagreed over currency and trade issues, and both laid claim to several border regions including Badme , Tsorona-Zalambessa , and Bure . On 6 May , 1998 , a few Eritrean soldiers entered the Badme region, a disputed zone, along the border of Eritrea and Ethiopia's northern province of Tigray , resulting in a fire fight between the Eritrean soldiers and the Tigrayan militia and security police they encountered . Eritrea, claiming that several Eritrean officials had been murdered near Badme, invaded with a large, mechanized force. Ethiopia, in what Eritrean radio described as a "total war" policy, mobilized its forces for a full assault against Eritrea. THE WAR The fighting quickly escalated to exchanges of artillery and tank fire and four weeks of intense fighting. Ethiopia launched air strikes against Eritrea's capital, Asmara . Eritrean aircraft then bombed the northern Ethiopian towns of Adigrat and Mek'ele . Ground troops fought on three fronts. There was then a lull as both sides mobilized huge forces along their common border and settled into a period of Trench Warfare similar to that of World War I . Both countries spent several hundred million dollars on new military equipment. In late June 1998 , both sides agreed to halt air raids. In October 1998, however, they renewed their mobilization efforts, moving soldiers and arms to the border. Hostilities involving artillery, tanks, ground troops, and warplanes resumed in February 1999 when Ethiopia took back Badme from Eritrea. The fighting led to massive internal displacement in both countries as civilians fled the war zone. Ethiopia expelled 77,000 Eritreans and Ethiopians of Eritrean origin, compounding Eritrea's refugee problem. The economies of both countries were already weak as a result of decades of revolution, civil war and drought. The war exacerbated these problems, resulting in food shortages. Prior to the war, 67% of Eritrea's trade was with Ethiopia, and Eritrea imported much of its food from Ethiopia as it could only provide one-quarter of the food it needed. The fighting also spread as the Eritrean government began supporting the Oromo Liberation Front , a rebel group seeking independence of Oromia from Ethiopia that was based in a part of Somalia controlled by Somali warlord Mohamed Farrah Aidid . Ethiopia retaliated by supporting groups in southern Somalia who were opposed to Aideed, and by renewing relations with the Islamic regime in Sudan – which is accused of supporting the Eritrean Islamic Salvation , a Sudan-based group that had launched terrorist attacks in the Eritrea-Sudan border region – while also lending support to various Eritrean rebel groups including a group known as the Eritrean Islamic Jihad . After a series of failed international mediations to stop the war, in May 2000, Ethiopia launched an offensive that broke through the Eritrean lines between Shambuko and Mendefera , crossed the Mareb River , and cut the road between Barentu to Mendefera, the main supply line for Eritrean troops on the western front of the fighting. In May 2000 , Ethiopia occupied about a quarter of Eritrea's territory, displacing 650,000 people and destroying key components of Eritrea's infrastructure. The Eritreans evacuated the disputed border town of Zalambessa and other disputed areas on the central front claiming it was a 'tactical retreat' to take away one of Ethiopia's last remaining excuses for continuing the war. Having recaptured its territory, Ethiopia declared the war was over. As they were in a strategically vulnerable position, the Eritreans were willing accept the ceasefire offer, followed by peace agreement. Eritrea claimed that 19,000 Eritrean soldiers were killed during the conflict, while Ethiopia is reported to have had 123,000 soldiers killed principally in the two major assaults in February-June 1999 and May-June 2000. Both these figures have been contested and some news reports simply state that "tens of thousands" or "as many as 100,000" were killed in the war The governments of both countries are widely accused of using the conflict as a basis for suppressing internal dissent. CESSATION OF HOSTILITIES On 12 December 2000 , the belligerents agreed to a comprehensive peace agreement and binding arbitration of their disputes under the Algiers Agreement . A 25-kilometer-wide Temporary Security Zone was established within Eritrea, patrolled by United Nations peacekeeping forces from over 60 countries (the United Nations Mission in Eritrea and Ethiopia, or UNMEE ). In April 2002 , the Boundary Commission established under the Algiers Agreement drew a boundary that provided some territory to each side, but awarded Badme to Eritrea. Ethiopia rejected that decision initially, but in November 2004 , said that it accepted the ruling "in principle". Nonetheless, Ethiopia has begun remobilizing troops along the border, and As Of 2005 , there is new fear that the two countries could return to war. On 7 December 2005 , Eritrea ordered Western members (particularly from the United States, Canada, Europe and Russia) of a UN peacekeeping mission on its border with Ethiopia to leave within 10 days, sparking concerns of further conflict with its neighbour. On 10 December 2005 , Ethiopia announced it was withdrawing some of its forces from the Eritrean border "in the interests of peace". On 15 December 2005 the United Nations began to withdraw peacekeepers from Eritrea in response to a 14 December 2005 UN resolution. On December 21 , 2005 , a commission at the Permanent Court Of Arbitration in The Hague ruled that Eritrea broke international law when it attacked Ethiopia in 1998, triggering the broader conflict. ARBITRATION As agreed in the Algiers Agreement, the two parties presented their case at the Permanent Court of Arbitration to two diffent Commissions: 1. Eritrea-Ethiopia Boundary Commission The International Bureau serves as Registry for this Commission established pursuant to the Agreement of 12 December 2000 between the Government of the State of Eritrea and the Government of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, with a mandate "to delimit and demarcate the colonial treaty border based on pertinent colonial treaties (1900, 1902 and 1908) and applicable international law." The Eritrea-Ethiopia Boundary Commission delivered its Decision on Delimitation of the Border between Eritrea and Ethiopia to representatives of the two governments on Saturday, April 13 , 2002 . ... On 19 November 2003 , the Commission met in The Hague with representatives of the parties. The President of the Commission made an opening statement expressing the concern of the Commission at the lack of progress in the demarcation process, setting out the Commission’s understanding of the positions of the parties and indicating that if progress was to be made, certain rigid positions would have to be modified. Following that meeting, the Commission concluded that, until the positions of either or both of the parties were modified, there was nothing more that the Commission could do. 2. Eritrea-Ethiopia Claims Commission The Eritrea-Ethiopia Claims Commission ::"''decide through binding arbitration all claims for loss, damage or injury by one Government against the other, and by nationals (including both natural and juridical persons) of one party against the Government of the other party or entities owned or controlled by the other party that are (a) related to the conflict that was the subject of the Framework Agreement, the Modalities for its Implementation and the Cessation of Hostilities Agreement, and (b) result from violations of international humanitarian law, including the 1949 Geneva Conventions, or other violations of international law.''" In July 2001 the Commission sat to decide its jurisdiction, procedures and possible remedies. The result of this sitting was issued on August 2001. In October 2001, following consultations with the Parties, the Commission adopted its Rules of Procedure. In December 2001 the Parties filed their claims with the Commission. The claims filed by the Parties relate to such matters as the conduct of military operations in the front zones, the treatment of POWs and of civilians and their property, diplomatic immunities and the economic impact of certain government actions during the conflict. At the end of 2005 final awards have been issued on claims on Pensions, and Ports. Partial awards have been issued for claims about: Prisoners of War, the Central Front, Civilians Claims, the Western and Eastern Fronts, Diplomatic, Economic and property losses, and ''Jus Ad Bellum''. BIBLIOGRAPHY
NOTES --Background and initial attack -> |
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