Ethiopia says fighting eases

Ethiopa says that fighting had subsided along its border with Eritrea after three days of heavy clashes.

A govenment spokeswoman, Selome Taddesse, said only minor skirmishes were reported at the eastern Bure front, some thirty-seven kilometres from the Eritrean port city of Assab.

There was no word about the situation in western Eritrea.

On Monday, Ethiopian said that its army was advancing towards the city of Teseney, which it lost to Eritrean forces in a fierce battle last week.

Eritrea has accepted a draft peace plan to end the conflict; the Ethiopians say they accept it in principle but need more time to consider it.

The United Nations has said it is ready to return to Algiers to discuss with both parties a UN peacekeeping presence along their border.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service