Eritrea claimed to have the upper hand in its border war with Ethiopia yesterday, but Ethiopian units pounded enemy positions and killed five members of a family in a predawn bombing raid on a village.
Eritrea said it had beaten back a major Ethiopian offensive along the border on Monday, killing at least 1,500 soldiers and wounding about 3,000 on a key military front near its southern town of Tsorona. But Ethiopia said it had captured two Eritrean strongholds on the Tsorona front during Monday's intense clashes and then held off Eritrean counterattacks. In Washington, President Bill Clinton called for an end to the hostilities and urged the two nations to reach a diplomatic settlement.
"I urge both parties to halt the fighting immediately. . .and recommit themselves to diplomatic efforts to secure a peaceful settlement," Mr Clinton said in a statement.
"I am particularly alarmed by the recent use of air power, which escalates the conflict and violates the agreed air-strike moratorium."
A border war between the two Horn of Africa countries has become increasingly fierce over the last 10 months.