British team heads into desert seeking kidnapped five

Published on Monday 5 March 2007 01:30

A TEAM of British officials set off into Ethiopia's north-eastern desert yesterday in an attempt to trace five Britons kidnapped during a sight-seeing tour.

Mystery surrounds their whereabouts, with Ethiopia and Eritrea each accusing the other of exploiting their disappearance to highlight simmering tension over a border dispute. There has been no claim of responsibility.

A group of diplomats including hostage negotiators arrived in the town of Mekele on Saturday, the closest airstrip to the Britons' last known location 500 miles from Addis Ababa.

Hopes are high in the diplomatic community for a speedy and peaceful resolution although the SAS is reported to have been placed on standby.

Eritrea and Ethiopia traded accusations over who was to blame. Eritrea dismissed allegations that its forces snatched the five - including several diplomats. But witnesses claimed to have seen the three men and two women at an Eritrean military base over the border.