Everything you need to know about Eritrea: news, reviews, in-depth analysis, opinion and more
Eritrea: Poor African Country across the Red Sea
Eritrea was part of the first Ethiopian kingdom of Aksum until its decline in the 8th century. It came under the control of the Ottoman Empire in the 16th century and later under the Egyptian empire. The Italians captured the coastal areas in 1885,and the Treaty of Uccialli gave Italy full control over Eritrea. The British captured Eritrea in 1941 and in 1952 it became the part of Ethiopia. The merging of Eritrea with Ethiopia gave birth to civil war led by rebel groups that lasted for 32 years culminating in the independence of Eritrea. In 1991 the Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front dethroned the communist dictator Mengistu. In 1993 Eritrea obtained its independence from Ethiopia supported by the UN. In 1993 Ethiopia recognized Eritrea's sovereignty and assured for co-operation and support for restructuring of Eritrea. The cooperation did not last long due to border disputes that pushed both the countries to war. This war caused major loss to infrastructure and lives of people.
Eritrea Profile: Overview of Facts and Figures
National Name: The State of Eritrea
• Life Expectancy: Male: 59.35 Years, Female: 63.46 Years (2008 est.)
Geographical Information on Eritrea :
Eritrea is located in North East Africa that includes Dahlak Archipelago and other islands along the Red Sea coast. It is bordered by Sudan to the north and west, Ethiopia to the south, Djibouti to the southeast and the Red Sea to the north and northeast.
The climatic condition of Eritrea is hot and dry along the desert strip while the coastal area of Eritrea has cooler and wetter climate.
Culture, Cuisine and Tradition Of Eritrea:
The countries of Ethiopia, Sudan, Italy and Arabia have influenced the Culture of Eritrea. This cultural assimilation provides a vibrant cultural aspect to Eritrea. This vibrancy can be reflected in lifestyle, following, beliefs and practices by the people of Eritrea. At the beginning of the 4 th century Eritrea was ruled by Aksumite Empire. Christianity became popular in the highland region at the same time while the Muslim faith and followings became popular in the lowland of Eritrea. This led to conflicts between the two religious groups. This issue was leveraged by foreign powers in order to have control over strategic locations near the Red Sea.
The staple diet of Eritrea consists of ?taita' or ?enjera'. It is a type of bread or pancake eaten with a meat or legume sauce. Taita is made mostly from cereal. Legumes are an important part of the diet and are largely prepared in the form of stew. Stew usually is very spicy and contains a variety of condiments, including onions, garlic, berbere (hot chili powder with other spices, cardamom, white and black cumin, basil, ginger, etc.).
Tourist Attraction of Eritrea:
Eritrea is blessed with long and beautiful seacoast, high mountains, low land, wild life, hot water springs, forested mountains and hot sandy desert areas. All these diverse natural beauty make it an ideal and fascinating tourist destination.
Eritrea has 1200 kms coastal stretch along the Red Sea. The vast stretch provides extraordinary marine life that includes rare varieties of fishes, colorful coral reefs, dolphins, turtles and other species. The lonely beach provides amazing natural panorama to delight tourists.
The capital Asmara is the most happening tourist destination of Eritrea. In Asmara one can find magnificent historical structure that gives the glimpse of colonial age. It is a city that narrates the past legacy of the Eritrea.
Major Sight-seeing Places in Eritrea include:
• Asmara
• Barentu
• Red Sea Beach
• Massawa
• Matara
Washington, May 21 (IANS) US Secretary of State John Kerry has expressed concern at global problems of discrimination and violence against religious groups, including Baha'is, Buddhists, Hindus, Jews, Christians, Muslims, and Sikhs besides increasing use of blasphemy and apostasy laws.
Washington, May 4 (IANS/AKI) North Korea, Iran and Syria are among the top 10 countries deemed worst for press freedom, according to an annual ranking by a Washington-based watchdog.
Brussels, May 4 (IANS/AKI) A leading press freedom watchdog has urged China, Iran, Turkey and Eritrea -- the four countries with the highest number of imprisoned journalists in the world -- to release them and end their repression.
Islamabad, May. 1 (ANI): A US government-appointed panel has urged Washington to step up pressure on Pakistan over religious freedom, warning that risks to its minorities have reached a crisis level.
Washington, May 1 (IANS) A US federal advisory body has reiterated its concerns about Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi's admissibility to the US due to his alleged "complicity in the 2002 riots" in the state.
As one spends a quiet evening on a quaint beach of the White Nile, it is no giveaway that the longest river on the planet is simmering. The slugfest involves the 11 riparian states, touched by the 6,650 km of main river and tributaries, each involved in a complicated dog fight of bilateral diplomacy mixed with regional trade unionism in north and east Africa with its ripples felt as far as the Gulf.
London, Feb 15 (ANI): Iran has rejected allegations that it transferred weapons to Islamic militants in Somalia as an "absurd fabrication."
Moscow, Jan 29 (IANS/RIA Novosti) Two-thirds of the world's nations lack the tools to counter corruption in their defence sectors, says a survey by anti-corruption watchdog Transparency International.
London, Jan. 11 (ANI): Somalia pirate Mohamed Abdi Hassan, known as 'big mouth', has decided of moving on after being in the piracy game for eight years.
New Delhi, Dec 26 (ANI): Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma announced additional incentives to boost exports here today.
Washington, Dec 12 (IANS/RIA Novosti) The number of journalists jailed worldwide hit a record high in 2012, with 232 reporters, photographers and editors imprisoned in 27 countries at the start of this month.
Kampala, Nov 14 (IANS) The Federation of Uganda Football Associations (FUFA) Wednesday said it plans to garner regional support to jointly host the coveted Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON).
New Delhi, Sep 25 (IANS) Just two years into its creation with the aim of forging closer cooperation among neighbours, the South Asian University here is already bringing nations of the region closer.
Washington, July 31 (IANS) China has criticised the US government's report on international religious freedom, calling it "a notorious practice of blatantly interfering in the internal affairs of other countries".
Washington, July 31 (IANS) India has been lauded by an official US report for "generally respecting" religious freedom, but said prosecution was often weak for perpetrators of "religiously oriented violence".
Sana'a, July 27 (IANS) A UAE charity will host an iftar banquet here for poor Yemeni orphans and those displaced in conflicts.
Washington, July 6 (ANI): Aerosols from relatively small volcanic eruptions can be boosted into the high atmosphere by weather systems such as monsoons, where they can affect global temperatures, a University of Saskatchewan-led international research team has discovered.
London, June 18 (ANI): Increasing levels of fatness around the world could have the same impact on global resources as adding an extra billion people to the planet, say researchers.
London, May 8 (ANI): Niger is the worst place on earth to be a mother, according to a report by the world's leading children NGO.
Moscow, May 4 (IANS/RIA Novosti) Eritrea, in the Horn of Africa region, leads the list of top 10 most censored countries in the world, according to an international non-governmental organisation, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ).
Washington, Jan 26(ANI): Paris based press freedom organization Reporters Without Borders has presented a new assessment report on global media freedom during 2011, and interestingly, the US has fallen 27 places to rank 47th in the latest Press Freedom Index.
London, Jan 21 (ANI): A maths teacher has become the best-dressed man in football after he splashed out 20,000 pounds on a collection of 300 official football shirts.
Washington, Dec 27(ANI): Former US diplomat Chris Mason has backed Pakistan province, Balochistan's claim for independence pointing out that its people have been victims of persecution and neglect for decades.
Washington, Oct 31 (ANI): Scientists in a London laboratory have developed a breakthrough technique for growing replacement organs, promising hope for people in desperate need of an organ transplant.
Washington, July 29 (ANI): The partnership between people and the ancestors of today's donkeys was sealed by mobile, pastoral people who recruited animals to help them survive the harsh Saharan landscape in northern Africa some 5,000 years ago, according to genetic investigators.
Addis Ababa, May 22 (IANS) While the African Union has expressed concern over the situation in Somalia, a group of East African nations have called on the United Nations to start air and sea blockade of the Islamist insurgents in the country.
Mogadishu, May 17 (DPA) The Somali insurgent group al-Shabaab Sunday took control of Jowhar, a key strategic town north of Mogadishu, after two hours of fierce fighting, witnesses and town elders said.
Nairobi/Mogadishu, May 15 (DPA) Somali President Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed has named a new military chief in the midst of the fighting between government forces and Islamist insurgents pushing to topple his transitional government, media reports said Friday.
New York, May 1 (DPA) UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said Friday that China, Cuba and Eritrea are responsible for half of the 125 journalists imprisoned in 2008, some of whom have been under detention for years.
Cairo, March 25 (DPA) Sudan President Omar al-Bashir will visit Egypt Wednesday despite an arrest warrant issued against him by the International Criminal Court (ICC), an Egyptian official said.
Washington, March 16 (ANI): Scientists are aiming to re-create the perfume of Egyptian Pharaoh Hatshepsut, using residues from a 3,500 year old vessel.
Bonn, March 16 (IANS) Pharaoh Hatshepsut assumed power in Egypt around 1479 BC, on behalf of her three-year-old stepson Thutmose III, and ruled for the next 20 years. One of the perfumes she used during her reign will now be recreated here.
Washington, December 5 (ANI): In what projects blogging as a dangerous for journalists, an annual "prison census" survey suggests that most of the journalists jailed worldwide are associated with the Internet medium.
New York, Nov 19 (IANS) The US joint commander of NATO's International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan, General David McKiernan, Tuesday clarified that India has not been approached by the United States to send its troops to the troubled country.
Nairobi, Oct 27 (Xinhua) African leaders are due to meet in Kenya Tuesday to discuss ways to stabilise Somalia that has been hit by violence for more than a decade, Kenya's foreign affairs minister said Monday.
Kochi, Oct 2 (ANI): In a unique move to propagate the message of nuclear weapon free world, 102 Hiroshima-Nagasaki atomic bomb survivors have reached Kochi. With India making the right moves to strike the nuke deal, the Japanese Hibakushas or the atomic attack survivors are worried about the safety of the world.
Kochi, Oct 2 (ANI): In a unique move to propagate the message of nuclear weapon free world, 102 Hiroshima-Nagasaki atomic bomb survivors have reached Kochi. With India making the right moves to strike the nuke deal, the Japanese Hibakushas or the atomic attack survivors are worried about the safety of the world.
London, Sept 12 (ANI): Child mortality rates are falling significantly in many regions, but remains high in sub-Saharan Africa and south Asia, according to UNICEF.
Washington, July 9 (ANI): Preparations for an African 'wall of trees' to slow down the southwards spread of the Sahara desert are getting underway.
