Total of $600 million extorted in ransom payments
| Asmara, Eritrea. Carsten ten Brink / Flickr / Creative Commons |
A report presented to the European Parliament shows that around 30,000 Eritreans have been kidnapped since 2007 and taken to the Sinai while ransom payments are demanded.
The report says that a total of around $600 million (€468m) was extorted from families and 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.
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