ICERAS

April 2026
Background

1. This Guidance Note supersedes UNHCR’s Eligibility Guidelines for Assessing the International
   Protection Needs of Asylum-Seekers from Eritrea of April 2011.1
2. Since its independence in 1993, Eritrea has been governed by the People’s Front for Democracy and
   Justice (PFDJ), headed by President Isaias Afwerki, who serves as both Head of State and Head of
   Government.2 No elections have been held since 1993.3
3. In 2002, the arbitral award by the Eritrea-Ethiopia Boundary Commission regarding the delimitation and
   demarcation of the border between the two countries was not implemented in full,4 which led to an
   impasse, referred to by Eritrea as a situation of “no war, no peace”.5 The Government of Eritrea
   therefore adopted a strategy focusing on national security and self-reliance, in pursuit of which it
   consolidated power in the Executive branch, suspended the nation’s Constitution, curtailed civil
   liberties, suspended the National Assembly, extended national service, postponed electoral processes,
   and incarcerated individuals without legal recourse on grounds of treason.6 While relations with Ethiopia
   thawed in 2018,7 more recently concerns have arisen about renewed tensions between the two
   countries.8
4. Eritrea reportedly continues to place restrictions on the enjoyment of basic human rights, including the
   rights to freedom of opinion, religion, and expression,9 with particular concerns having been expressed
   about human rights violations in the context of Eritrea’s national service.10 The Special Rapporteur for
   the situation of human rights in Eritrea stated in May 2025: “Eritrea has yet to establish credible and
   effective mechanisms capable of addressing the prevailing impunity and providing redress to victims.
   This persistent failure to ensure accountability not only undermines the rule of law, but also signals
   tolerance for human rights violations, emboldening perpetrators and perpetuating cycles of abuse.”11
   1 UNHCR, Eligibility Guidelines for Assessing the International Protection Needs of Asylum-Seekers from Eritrea, 20 April 2011,
   www.refworld.org/policy/countrypos/unhcr/2011/en/79008. The 2011 Eligibility Guidelines had superseded guidelines first published in 2009.
   UNHCR, UNHCR Eligibility Guidelines for Assessing the International Protection Needs of Asylum-Seekers from Eritrea, April 2009,
   www.refworld.org/policy/countrypos/unhcr/2009/en/66801.
   2 UN General Assembly, Situation of Human Rights in Eritrea, 7 May 2024, A/HRC/56/24, www.ecoi.net/en/file/local/2110397/g2407300.pdf, para.
5. See also, Freedom House, Freedom in the World 2025 – Eritrea, 2025, www.ecoi.net/en/document/2129039.html.
   3 UN General Assembly, Situation of Human Rights in Eritrea, 12 May 2025, A/HRC/59/24, https://docs.un.org/en/A/HRC/59/24, para. 35.
   4 Permanent Court of Arbitration, Eritrea-Ethiopia Boundary Commission, https://pca-cpa.org/en/cases/99/, accessed 24 February 2026; UN, Reports
   of International Arbitral Awards, Delimitation of the Border (Eritrea-Ethiopia): Demarcation of the Eritrea/Ethiopia Boundary Directions, 8 July 2002,
   VOLUME XXV, https://legal.un.org/riaa/cases/vol_XXV/207-215.pdf, pp. 207-215.
   5 UN General Assembly, Report of the Detailed Findings of the Commission of Inquiry on Human Rights in Eritrea, 5 June 2015, A/HRC/29/CRP.1,
   www.refworld.org/reference/countryrep/unhrc/2015/en/105184, paras 121, 164-166.
   6 International Crisis Group (ICG), Eritrea: Scenarios for Future Transition, 28 March 2013,
   www.ecoi.net/en/file/local/1204499/1226_1365071032_200-eritrea-scenarios-for-future-transition.pdf, pp. 13-16. In 2013, the Government of
   Eritrea blamed the “continued occupation of Sovereign Eritrean Territories by Ethiopia” for “the prolongation of the national service and other onerous
   burdens on the country and its people”, including “expenditure for defense as well as undesirable delays in the constitutional process”. UN General
   Assembly, National Report Submitted in Accordance with Paragraph 5 of the Annex to Human Rights Council Resolution 16/21: Eritrea, 8 November
   2013, A/HRC/WG.6/18/ERI/1, https://upr-info.org/sites/default/files/documents/2014-03/a_hrc_wg.6_18_eri_1_e.pdf, para. 91.
   7 Al Jazeera, Ethiopia, Eritrea Sign Peace Deal at Saudi Arabia Summit, 17 September 2018; www.aljazeera.com/news/2018/9/17/ethiopia-eritrea-
   sign-peace-deal-at-saudi-arabia-summit; Deutsche Welle, Ethiopia, Eritrea Officially End War, 9 July 2018, www.dw.com/en/ethiopia-eritrea-
   officially-end-war/a-44585296.
   8 ICG, Ethiopia, Eritrea and Tigray: A Powder Keg in the Horn of Africa, 18 February 2026, www.crisisgroup.org/brf/africa/ethiopia-eritrea/b210-
   ethiopia-eritrea-and-tigray-powder-keg-horn-africa; UNSG, Statement Attributable to the Spokesperson for the Secretary-General – on the 25th
   Anniversary of the Algiers Agreement, 12 December 2025, www.un.org/sg/en/content/sg/2025-12-12; BBC, Eritrea Quits Regional Bloc as Tensions
   Rise with Ethiopia, 12 December 2025, www.bbc.com/news/articles/cly555k8de3o.
   9 UN General Assembly, Situation of Human Rights in Eritrea, 12 May 2025, A/HRC/59/24, https://docs.un.org/en/A/HRC/59/24, paras 53-61, 62-67;
   HRW, World Report 2025 – Eritrea, 16 January 2025, www.ecoi.net/en/document/2120042.html.
   10 UN General Assembly, Situation of Human Rights in Eritrea, 12 May 2025, A/HRC/59/24, https://docs.un.org/en/A/HRC/59/24, paras 24-33.
   11 UN General Assembly, Situation of Human Rights in Eritrea, 12 May 2025, A/HRC/59/24, https://docs.un.org/en/A/HRC/59/24, para. 43.
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