The release in Asmara of five hostages connected to the British embassy in Addis Ababa, could cause a serious diplomatic fallout for the Eritrean authorities.

Throughout the 12-day hostage crisis, Eritrea insisted that it had nothing to do with the abductions, in spite of allegations that the Afar rebel group accused of seizing the diplomats had taken them into Eritrea.

"It is a baseless fabrication. It has nothing to do with Eritrea. It happened inside Ethiopia," said Ali Abdu, the Eritrean Information Minister. "The Ethiopian regime is trying to exploit it for political prostitution. They always blow up bombs and accuse Eritrea. It is an Ethiopian staged drama."

Those protestations rang hollow today when the Eritrean authorities handed over the five to the British embassy in Asmara.

The hostages had earlier been handed over to the Eritreans in the disputed border area near Ethiopia by the kidnappers, believed to be a splinter group of the Afar Revolutionary Democratic Unity Front (ARDUF).

Margaret Beckett, the Foreign Secretary, made a point today of thanking both Ethiopia and Eritrea for their help in securing the release of the five Westerners. Britain will now hope that the matter is closed.

But there are still eight Ethiopian nationals being held by the kidnappers. The authorities in Addis Ababa may now hold the Eritrean government responsible for their safety.

The two sides fought a bloody border war in 1998. The latest incident is bound to inflame the situation further.

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