Ties appeared to strengthen after the 2018 peace accord, but have soured again.
One Eritrean refugee, who spoke on condition of anonymity for security reasons, said he was arrested after someone overheard him speaking Tigrinya, a language spoken in Eritrea and also in the Tigray region of Ethiopia.
“We were sitting in a cafe when someone heard us speaking Tigrinya and called the police.
“Six officers arrived and detained us. The inspector later demanded cash to release us and the payments were arranged secretly to avoid evidence,” he claimed.
Many Eritreans in Addis Ababa are refugees fleeing forced conscription and government oppression in the country of their birth.
More than 20,000 Eritreans have crossed into Ethiopia this year, adding to the 70,000 refugees already registered in the country.
While some Eritreans sought safety in Ethiopia A brutal civil war broke out in Sudan 18 months ago,
One refugee told the BBC that his sister was arrested on her way to the shops and held in custody for three weeks.
“I can’t visit her because I’m afraid of being arrested, so I send Ethiopian friends to check on her and deliver food and clothes. I am worried that they might deport her to Eritrea,” he said.
Returning to Eritrea would put many refugees at risk of imprisonment.
Although some detainees have been released, many remain in custody. Some were detained for weeks or even months without due process.
The UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) has told BBC Tigrinya that it has received reports of the detention of Eritrean refugees and expressed deep concern about it.
Refugees are becoming increasingly desperate and many are looking for alternative ways to leave Ethiopia. But there are reports that Eritreans have even been arrested when trying to request travel documents that they need to leave behind.
The arrests highlighted wider concerns about the safety of Eritrean refugees across Ethiopia. In the Alemwah refugee camp in the Amhara region, refugees speak of frequent robberies, kidnappings and physical attacks by armed groups.
“Some refugees were shot and others were stabbed for their belongings, such as mobile phones. At least nine refugees were killed last year,” said a representative of the camp.
Some refugees draw parallels with the mass arrests and deportations of Eritreans during the 1998–2000 war between the two countries, when thousands were forcibly expelled from Ethiopia.
Relations deteriorated again after the end of a a two-year civil war in the Tigray region of northern Ethiopia.
Flights and telephone communication between the two countries are suspendedand diplomatic contacts between their leaders ceased.
Eritrean refugees in Ethiopia are calling on the international community, especially the UN and human rights organizations, to intervene.
One Eritrean who lived and studied in Addis Ababa for six years described the arrests as indiscriminate and deliberate.
“Both documented and undocumented Eritrean citizens are being targeted. Even mothers who visit detained family members are arrested,” he told the BBC.
Another refugee said: “The arrests are unjustified and our lives are in danger. We were fleeing persecution in Eritrea only to face it here.”
