A report presented to the European Parliament on December 4 showed that around 30,000 Eritreans have been kidnapped since 2007 and taken to Sinai while ransom payments are demanded.
The report, conducted by an Eritrean human-rights activist and professors from a Dutch university, said that a total of around $600million (€468million) was extorted from families. Christians are among the thousands kidnapped.
Eritrea is ranked tenth on the 2013 World Watch List, which ranks the 50 countries in which Christians are most under pressure for their faith. According to Eritrea’s Evangelical Alliance, approximately 1,200 Christians are now incarcerated in Eritrea.
Collaboration
The report said that Eritrea’s Border Surveillance Unit (BSU) and Sudanese security officials are among the ‘actors’ collaborating with the gangs that hold people hostage in Sinai. The Eritrean military was also blamed for abducting young people and forcing them to join the National Youth Service, while the Eritrean government came under fire for its inability to protect its citizens.
However, speaking to the BBC’s Focus on Africa, the Eritrean Ambassador to the UK denied the allegations, citing a conspiracy between Eritrean asylum seekers and the West. He said the Eritrean government was doing its best to deal with the criminals.
