United Nations peacekeepers are withdrawing from nearly half their posts in a security zone along the tense border between Ethiopia and Eritrea.
The U.N. mission for the two Horn of African nations says restrictions on peacekeepers imposed by Eritrea has forced it to withdraw troops from 18 of its 40 posts. The U.N. says troops from these posts will be used to augment other positions inside the security zone.
Earlier this month, Eritrea banned U.N. helicopter flights in its territory. That decision was followed by a ban on U.N. night patrol vehicles inside the security zone.
The U.N. says the new restrictions have made it impossible to guarantee there is no renewed military buildup in the region.
Thousands of U.N. peacekeepers monitor a cease-fire between the two nations, which fought a two-year war over their shared border.
