Italian EU delegate expelled from Ethiopia after arrest

Oct 20, 2006, 11:21 GMT

Addis Ababa/Nairobi - An Italian national was among two European Union diplomats who were arrested and expelled from Ethiopia for allegedly attempting to smuggle two Ethiopians wanted for serious crimes across the border to Kenya, according to unconfirmed reports.

Sources in the capital Addis Ababa said the Italian was a civil society and human rights adviser working for the EU delegation and was expelled from Ethiopia following the arrest. His whereabouts are unknown.

The nationality and location of the second delegate are still unknown.

The European Union said Friday it is investigating the arrest Thursday of the two delegates to Ethiopia.

'We are in contact with Ethiopian authorities and trying to get all the information we can,' EU development spokesman in Brussels, Amadeu Altafaj Tardio, told Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa.

'It's a delicate situation. We were not informed that there was a problem with our personnel from the Ethiopian authorities so we are very surprised to hear of their arrest,' he added.

State-owned Ethiopian TV reported on Thursday that police had stopped a European Commission car in the southern town of Moyale along the Kenyan border. The two Europeans were arrested for allegedly smuggling two Ethiopians wanted by authorities across the border.

According to a statement by Ethiopia's immigration department read on Ethiopian TV on Thursday, the Europeans' move 'violates the sovereignty of the country while jeopardizing the security of the nation.'

Meanwhile, rights group Amnesty International condemned the arrest on Thursday of Ethiopian lawyer Yalemzewd Bekele, who was stopped while she was attempting to cross the border into Kenya.

Amnesty said she was arrested 'in connection with the publication and distribution by the political opposition Coalition for Unity and Democracy of a calendar of action for non-violent civil disobedience.'

The EU is Ethiopia's largest trading partner and one of its biggest donors, but has criticized the country for violating political rights after last year's elections saw scores of opposition party members arrested by the government.