aftermath

Today, almost a year ahead from that time, there is still 4,100 peace keepers along the broiling strip of borderland in Eritrea. Despite the apparent success of the international community to bring about peace, many issues remain
unsolved. The danger of war’s revival is still present in the region.
Only last March Eritrea agreed to completely withdraw its troops while Ethiopia still has its companies inside the troop-free zone.

Also, both countries need to face the post-war reality which seems to be truly shattering. Recognized as one of the world’s deadliest wars of this decade the Ethio-Eritrean conflict left 50 000 humans annihilated and 550 000 displaced in course of deportations.

Deported Eritrean woman

Tragically enough, the war of the two poorest nations involved large set-piece battles and hi-tech equipment raising both countries’ expenditures to approximately $1 million per day. Hence, the most urgent issue in the post-war era is the economic recovery of the Horn of Africa. And this, certainly, can only be achieved with an enormous help from
the international community. Overall, the most conspicuous areas of the
post-war degradation are:

Environmental degradation: apart from pollutants, the war has triggered a sever deforestation that will further cause erosion from both rain and wind. In Ethiopia, for example, nearly 200,000 hectares of land in the Adiabo area have been deforestrated.

Landmines: in both Ethiopia and Eritrea landmines are the greatest threat to the returning the to their households people. Not only are the landmines placed in front of bunkers and trenches but also near the villages and the border area.

Religious Establishments: in both countries the religious places have been demolished and looted. This, obviously include the loss of the cultural heritage of humanity such as frescos or paintings.

Destruction of Social Services: both Ethiopia and Eritrea suffered from a loss of such important institutions as schools or hospital, deliberately bombarded during the war. Currently, many villages are still cut from fresh water. Moreover, many households underwent looting as well as bombardment in order to prevent the inhabitants from returning

Ethio-Eritrean border

Homepage I Causes of War I Territorial I Economic I Nakfa
Divergent economic policies I The ports
International Involvement I US role I Peace negotiations
Aftermath of war I Bibliography I Related Sites