Eritrea, Djibouti Troops Exchange Fire At Border

10 June 2008

DJIBOUTI (AFP) — Djiboutian and Eritrean troops exchanged fire Tuesday for the first time since a tense stand-off started at their border two months ago, the Djiboutian military said in a statement.

The clashes took place in the Ras Doumeira area at Djibouti's northern border, where Eritrean troops carried out an incursion on April 16 that sparked military tension between the two neighbours.

"During the pursuit of an Eritrean deserter who tried to rally the Djiboutian armed forces, the Eritrean military opened fire on our units at around 12:30 am (0930 GMT)," the Djioutian army said in a statement.

"The Djiboutian armed forces retaliated with their weapons," it added.

The army explained that Eritrean military officials posted on Mount Gabla then issued an ultimatum for Djibouti to turn in all 30 Eritrean deserters on its soil or face armed action.

"At 6:40 pm (1540 GMT), under the cover of darkness and prayer time, Eritrean troops opened fire on our soldiers," the statement went on.

"In the face of this attack, our military struck back... As this statement is published, the fighting continues."

The clash was the first since tension between the two neighbours escalated two months ago and raised fears of an all-out military confrontation that would plunge the already restive region into further chaos.

Djibouti and Eritrea had already clashed twice over the border area at the southern end of the Red Sea.

In April 1996 they almost went to war after a Djibouti official accused Eritrea of shelling the town of Ras Doumeira.

In 1999, Eritrea accused Djibouti of siding with Asmara's arch-foe Ethiopia, while Djibouti accused its neighbour of supporting Djiboutian rebels and having designs on the Ras Doumeira region. Eritrea has denied this.

Djibouti has accused Eritrean forces of digging trenches on both sides of the border on April 16, infringing several hundred metres (yards) on to Djiboutian territory, an accusation Asmara has vehemently denied.

On May 19, Eritrean President Issaias Afeworki described talk of a military standoff as "a wild invention."

"We are not willing to accept an invitation to get involved in a new problem or regional crisis," he said in a statement.

The tiny Red Sea state of Djibouti also has borders with Ethiopia and Somalia, where regional power struggles have played out for years.

Somali political rivals on Monday reached an agreement -- which includes a three-month truce to begin within a month -- during UN-sponsored talks in Djibouti.

According to international rights organisations, thousands of young Eritreans attempt to leave their country every year. Ethiopia recently reported that 1,300 Eritrean had defected and crossed the border in six months.