81 Eritreans repatriated

Eighty-one Eritrean civilians were repatriated from Ethiopia on Friday, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) announced on Monday. It said "the group included a medical case and 12 unaccompanied children, who were later reunited with their families". The operation took place between the Eritrean town of Adi Kwala and the Ethiopian town of Rama via the Mereb river crossing point, the ICRC said. It added that Red Cross teams from both countries provided food and water to the repatriated people as they arrived, noting that the ICRC would continue helping people affected by the recent war, under the 1949 Geneva Conventions. In another development, the ICRC in the Eritrean capital, Asmara, on 16 an 17 March conducted two presentations on its work to 20 Eritrean prison officers. The ICRC delegates explained the purpose of ICRC visits to detainees, the procedures followed when conducting such visits and the legal basis for this activity". They also discussed the organisation's mandate and its activities in Eritrea. "The ICRC regularly visits various places of detention throughout the country."