Eritrea seeks Arab support to end conflict

Ahmed O'yehia, the special envoy of the Algerian president Abd El-Aziz Bu Taflika - the current head of the Organization of African Unity - arrived in Adis Ababa today at the beginning of his tour between Ethiopia and Eritrea to end the current fighting between the two sides.

O'Yehia convened today with Ethiopian Prime Minister Melis Zinawi, clarifying that the Ethiopian forces inflicted on the Eritrean forces great losses.

Meantime, Eritrea asked for Arab support through the messages of the Eritrean foreign minister to Egypt and to Arab league secretary general Esmat Abd El-Maguid asking the support for the more than half a million persons uprooted by the current conflict.

Eritrea urged Egypt to take a swift action to stop the aggravating Ethiopian- Eritrean cross border conflict. President Hosni Mubarak yesterday received a message from Eritrean President Isaya’s Afewerki asking him to use Egypt’s clout to contain the explosive situation and condemn what he termed as Ethiopian invasion of Eritrea.

Eritrean ambassador in Cairo, Mohammad Omar told reporters after delivering the message to Mubarak that Eritrea expected Cairo to pursue intensive efforts to launch an initiative to solve the situation.