Eritrea dismisses accusation that seized tourists

NAIROBI, Mar 4 (Reuters) Eritrea has dismissed as ''baseless fabrication'' accusations by an Ethiopian official that Eritrean forces kidnapped a group of tourists, including Britons and Ethiopians, in a remote part of Ethiopia.

Ismael Ali Sero, the head of the Afar administration region told Reuters yesterday that the kidnappers came from Arat military training camp in Eritrea and burned vehicles and two homes before leaving with the group.

But the Eritrean Information Minister Ali Abdu said Asmara had nothing to do with the abductions.

''It is a baseless fabrication. It has nothing to do with Eritrea. It happened inside Ethiopia,'' he told Reuters in Nairobi by telephone. ''The Ethiopian regime is trying to exploit it for political prostitution. They always blow up bombs and accuse Eritrea. It is an Ethiopian staged drama.'' Asmara routinely denies accusations of infiltration by its arch-foe. Ethiopia and Eritrea fought a war in 1998-2000 and still dispute their border.

REUTERS SHB KN1718