Africanews.com: Eritrea hosts final peace pact between Ethiopia and ONLF – 22 October
- Africanews reports on the signing of another peace deal between the Ethiopian government and a rebel group, the Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF), in Asmara, Eritrea.
- The meeting between Foreign Affairs Minister Workneh Gebeyehu and Admiral Mohamed Omar Osman from the ONLF sealed a deal authorising the ONLF to peacefully pursue its activities in Ethiopia’s eastern Somali Regional State (SRS).
- Other media outlets such as the Daily Nation and Ezega.com cover this development. Face2FaceAfrica explains the origins of the conflict between Ethiopia and the ONLF.
Al Jazeera: Business hopes and refugee woes after Eritrea-Ethiopia peace deal – 23 October
- Al Jazeera reports on Eritrea’s rekindled hopes for economic growth, as well as the ongoing refugee crisis, following the July peace agreement.
- The article includes testimony from a number of Eritrean businesspeople, who offer their thoughts on current developments. The manager of a cement factory in Mekelle, Ethiopia, suggests that renewed trade links with Eritrean ports – closer than those in Djibouti – would reduce import costs and increase the profitability of global trade.
- The article also touches on the growing number of migrants and refugees from Eritrea to Ethiopia, mainly as a result of Eritrea’s struggling economy, continuing indefinite conscription, and political repression.
- Zenebe Berhane, a city administration spokesman from Rama, Ethiopia, expresses a hope that economic gains may reverse the refugee flow, and hinted at plans for a university on the two countries’ borders.
Eritrea Hub: History won’t judge Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed and the Ethiopian people kindly – 23 October
- Eritrea Hub publishes an opinion piece from Petros Tesfagiorgis, who analyses recent developments in Eritrea.
- He argues that “the president of Eritrea is using the peace with Ethiopia to consolidate his repressive regime and escape international isolation,” and fears that the expected end to the indefinite national service would result in deployment of young Eritreans to fight in Yemen.
- Mr Tesfagiorgis praises the recent Eritrea Focus photography exhibition in London in September, telling the country’s history to Eritreans and Ethiopians who grew up in the West.
- He writes that “Eritreans still long for true freedom” and lauds the efforts of those lobbying for help from the UNHCR and the IOM to rescue the Eritrean refugees trapped in Libya. He makes an urgent appeal for readers to join this effort.
- Mr Tesfagiorgis announces that a demonstration will take place outside the Italian Embassy in London on 31 October, led by Sham Gabriel from the Eritrean Youth organisation.
The Africa Report: Ethiopia: An Afro-Gulf Renaissance – 23 October
- The African Report publishes an article on the peace agreement between Eritrea and Ethiopia and the new regional dynamic with the African countries’ Arab neighbours.
- Ahead of the signing of the peace agreement between Eritrea and Ethiopia, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, Mohammed bin Zayed, agreed to inject $3bn into the Ethiopian economy, playing a crucial role in the mediation of the conflict resolution. The Emirati ruler is currently using the port of Assab to launch attacks on Yemen.
- About 90% of Ethiopian exports and imports transit through Djibouti. The opening of Eritrea is now creating new opportunities: a port in the Bay of Anfile will serve as a base for Danakali to export from its $320m Eritrean mining project, and could be used by fertiliser giant Yara to export from its $700 Ethiopian potash mine.
