UNMEE says Security zone "calm and stable"

The Temporary Security Zone (TSZ) between Eritrea and Ethiopia is said to be calm and stable, despite accusations of violations. A spokesman for the UN Mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea (UNMEE) said the peace process remained on track. His comments follow accusations by the Eritrean government on 5 December that Ethiopian forces had attacked an Eritrean police and militia post inside the TSZ. In a letter of protest to UNMEE, Eritrea claimed that on 30 November, 250 Ethiopian soldiers had opened fire on an Eritrean police and local militia post in Gegew. It said the attack "represents a dangerous provocation jeopardising the peace process". Speaking from Asmara, UNMEE spokesman Victor Nkolo told reporters that UNMEE's Indian battalion (INDBAT), located at the Italian Fort, had heard six shots from the direction of the village of Hambokale in the TSZ, close to its southern boundary. "INDBAT observed no Ethiopian attack as claimed by the Eritrean authorities," he said. "INDBAT believes that the shots heard were warning shots."