A senior Ethiopian official accused Eritrean forces today of kidnapping five Britons and 13 Ethiopians and taking them to a military camp in neighbouring Eritrea.
The five tourists, including diplomats from the British embassy in Addis Ababa, went missing on Thursday in a remote area of the Horn of Africa nation.
"They were taken to Wema district of Asab Province in Eritrea. This has been confirmed by two Ethiopians of Afar origin who have been left behind," Ismael Ali Sero, the head of the Afar administrative region, told Reuters by telephone.
"We have confirmation that the commandos came from Arat military training camp inside Eritrea. They torched four vehicles and two homes before they left with the group."
There was no immediate comment from the Eritrean government. Ethiopia and Eritrea fought a war in 1998-2000 and are embroiled in another dispute over their common border which the United Nations said in January could lead to renewed hostilities.
Britain has sent a six-strong team of senior Foreign Office officials to Ethiopia to help free those kidnapped. It said the missing were staff from the embassy in Addis Ababa or relatives of members of staff.
Tour companies said the groups disappeared while visiting the northeast Afar region, considered one of the world's most hostile terrains. The missing Ethiopians were people from the Afar region who were working as drivers and translators.