Ethiopia says it has withdrawn from west Eritrea

Ethiopia said on Tuesday that it had withdrawn its forces from western Eritrea after accomplishing its military objectives. Government spokeswoman Selome Taddesse said in a statement that Ethiopia had dealt a “humiliating and devastating defeat” which had left Asmara “begging to continue the peace process, which it obstructed so many times in the past out of arrogance and an erroneous belief in its military might. “After successfully achieving their mission, the heroic Ethiopia defence forces that had been controlling western Eritrea since 12 May, have withdrawn,” she said, adding that Ethiopia had no interest in occupying sovereign Eritrean territory and had withdrawn its forces accordingly.

The statement gave no specific locations of the withdrawal; it was not clear, for instance, if its forces continued to occupy the regional centre of Barentu. In Asmara, Eritrean presidential spokesman Yemane Gebremeskel said he had heard reports that the Ethiopians were beginning to pull out of parts of western Eritrea but was still seeking confirmation. He also said that Eritrea had fulfilled its pledge to pull out of all disputed areas, including Bada and Bure on the eastern front. An Ethiopian statement on Tuesday.