Ethiopian Airlines ‘seeking clarification’ after Eritrea suspends flights..

Eritrean authorities have suspended all flights by Ethiopian Airlines to the East African nation effective Sept. 30, the airline said on Wednesday, Flights from Ethiopia to Eritrea had resumed in 2018 after two decades, following a peace deal between the two neighbours that earned Ethiopia’s Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed a Nobel peace prize a year later…

Ethiopian Airlines said that it is “currently seeking clarification from the Eritrean Civil Aviation Authority and is committed to resolving any issues amicably and promptly.’ The flag carrier confirmed receiving a notice from the Eritrean Civil Aviation Authority through a letter dated 21 July 2024 indicating the suspension of all Ethiopian Airlines flights to Eritrea, effective September 30, 2024.

Earlier today, a letter purportedly written by the Eritrean Civil Aviation Authority circulated online announcing the flight suspension. Eritrea claimed the decision was due to “consistent and persistent malicious trading practices pursued by Ethiopian airlines in general and systemic and organized passengers’ luggage theft, pilferage, damage prolonged delays, and loss with no compensation in particular, coupled with unjustified and unwarranted price hikes and other irregularities witnessed.”

However relations between Eritrea and Ethiopia appeared to have cooled off following the signing of the Pretoria Peace Cessation of Hostilities Agreement in November 2022, to end the two-year devastating war in Tigray, which was backed by Eritrean forces who fought alongside the Ethiopian army and militias from neighboring Amhara region.