Addis Ababa, 9 July 2015 (WIC) – Egypt has deported 45 Ethiopians who arrived in Cairo after fleeing the war-torn Libya, Youm7 reported Thursday.
The Ethiopians reportedly arrived on board of a private plane coming from Tobruk airport after coordination with Egyptian authorities.
Egyptian officials and diplomats from the Ethiopian embassy in Cairo received the Ethiopian returnees, who headed to Addis Ababa after their travel papers were finalized.
In May, President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi received some 30 Ethiopians; the Egyptian army participated with the Libyan government in freeing the Ethiopians from Libya after being kidnapped by militants.
Many Ethiopians have been fleeing the turmoil in the oil-rich country after more than 25 of their countrymen were beheaded in a video broadcasted in April reportedly by Libya’s branch of the Islamic State (IS) group.
In mid-February, the militant group beheaded 20 Egyptian Copts in Libya’s Sirte; the aggression was followed by retaliatory airstrikes by the Egyptian army on the group’s hideouts in Derna.
After sour Egyptian-Ethiopian relations in the wake of the Renaissance Dam crisis, the two countries have improved their ties by signing an initial agreement on the dam so it does not damage Egypt’s share of the Nile River waters. (http://www.thecairopost.com)