Ethiopia: Security concerns in Afar region (Erta Ale Volcano) /update 1

Event

US diplomatic officials are advising individuals to avoid travel to the Erta Ale Volcano in the Afar region following the killing of a tourist on December 3. Embassy personnel are currently prohibited from traveling to the region due to security concerns.

Context

A German national was killed when unidentified armed men attacked a group of foreign tourists near the Erta Ale Volcano on December 3. At least ten others were reportedly kidnapped.

Banditry is common in the area, where both Eritrean and Ethiopian separatist rebels have operated in the past, and kidnappings have been known to occur in Afar. In 2012, five foreign tourists were killed, two injured and four kidnapped in the area. Both the Eritrean and the Ethiopian governments blamed each other for the attack. In 2007, five Europeans and 13 Ethiopians were kidnapped in Afar and eventually released.

Eritrea gained independence from Ethiopia in 1993, but a border war broke out five years later, resulting in the deaths of tens of thousands of people. Despite an official end to hostilities, relations between the two countries remain tense, and the security situation can be volatile along the border area.

Advice

Individuals in Ethiopia are advised to avoid all travel to the Afar region and other areas along the border with Eritrea due to the volatile security situation.