DATE=2/23/2000
TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT
TITLE=ETHIOPIA / ERITREA (L-O)
NUMBER=2-259499
BYLINE=CAROL PINEAU
DATELINE=ASMARA, ERITREA
INTERNET=YES
CONTENT=
VOICED AT:
INTRO: The Ethiopian/Eritrean war is heating up
again, with Eritrea accusing Ethiopia of launching an
attack along the border. As Carol Pineau reports from
Asmara, the fighting comes as mediators shuttle
between the capitals.
TEXT: Eritrea says an Ethiopian brigade with more
than 2,500 soldiers attacked along the extreme left
flank of the strategic Burie front, thereby ending an
eight-month lull in fighting in the Horn of Africa
war.
The Burie front is near the Eritrean port of Assab - a
point that land-locked Ethiopia has attacked in past
battles.
The Eritrean military reports its troops repelled the
attack after a few hours, killing more than 120
Ethiopian soldiers and injuring 80. Eritrea does not
release its own casualty figures.
An Eritrea spokesman said the aim of the attack could
have been to gain a strategic position for a future
offensive. But he added it could also have been what
he called "military arm flexing" - a message to
international mediators that Ethiopia is ready to go
to war if it doesn't get what it wants in
negotiations.
Eritrea has agreed to a three-part peace plan put
forth by the Organization of African Unity, the O-A-U,
but Ethiopia has rejected the proposal, saying the
third section, called the "Technical Arrangements", is
"unsatisfactory."
This most recent attack came as U-S special envoy
Anthony Lake and O-A-U special envoy Ahmed Ouyahia
were shuttling to Addis Ababa in the hopes of getting
Ethiopia to agree to the plan, or at least heading off
a new round of fighting.
Mr. Lake and Mr. Ouyahia had no comment on the attack,
and there was no independent confirmation of the
event.
Last weekend Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi
said during an address on Ethiopian government radio
that Ethiopia was prepared to use whatever means
necessary to protect and regain what it considers to
be its sovereign territory.
The two countries have fought several major battles
since war broke out in May 1998. After major
offensives last March and June, fighting died down,
but as both countries replenished their military
hardware and moved more troops to the border, it
appeared a new round of fighting was imminent.
Eritrea says this latest attack may have been a
message of Ethiopia's military intent, or it could be
a prelude to a larger offensive in the near future.
Officials in Asmara say another attack could come at
any time, and at any of the fronts scattered along the
1000-kilometer border.
The nearly two-year old conflict has left tens of
thousands dead and hundreds of thousands displaced.
Today, more than 600,000 soldiers face each other
across the disputed border in what is potentially
Africa's deadliest war. (Signed)
NEB/CP/ENE-T/gm/africa
23-Feb-2000 16:45 PM EDT (23-Feb-2000 2145 UTC)
NNNN
Source: Voice of America
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