Meles Zenawi

Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi has accused troops from neighboring Eritrea of infiltrating a demilitarized zone along their disputed border.

During a news conference in Addis Ababa, Mr. Meles said he was concerned over a rise in incidents involving Eritrean troops he said had entered the region disguised as militia. He also said restrictions imposed by Eritrea on U.N. peacekeepers were a violation of the 2000 peace deal which ended a border war between the two nations.

The United Nations' mission says the restrictions on helicopter flights into Eritrean airspace and night patrols have forced it to scale back its outposts by nearly half and reduced its ability to monitor the border.

The region remains extremely tense despite a legally-binding ruling by an independent boundary commission.