Difference between revisions of "Eritrea"
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== Eritrea == | == Eritrea == | ||
| − | The present day State of Eritrea was home to the ancient kingdom of D'mt in the 7th and 8th centuries BCE, and several smaller successor kingdoms thereafter. [[Italy]] invaded and occupied the nation in 1890, where it became a part of Italian East Africa (along with [[Ethiopia]] and Italian Somaliland). When Italian forces were expelled in 1941, Eritrea came under British mandate. In 1952, | + | The present day State of Eritrea was home to the ancient kingdom of D'mt in the 7th and 8th centuries BCE, and several smaller successor kingdoms thereafter. [[Italy]] invaded and occupied the nation in 1890, where it became a part of Italian East Africa (along with [[Ethiopia]] and Italian Somaliland). When Italian forces were expelled in 1941, Eritrea came under British mandate. In 1952, with encouragement from the [[USA|United States]], however, Eritrea was federated with [[Ethiopia]] under UN mandate, effectively becoming a province under Ethiopian administration. This sparked an independence movement and brought about the Eritrean War of Independence, which lasted from 1961 until 1991 when the (Marxist-Leninist) Eritrean People's Liberation Front (EPLF) defeated Ethiopian forces in Eritrea and took control of the country. In April 1993, in a referendum supported by Ethiopia, the Eritrean people voted almost unanimously in favor of independence. The nation again went to war with Ethiopia in 1998 over a border dispute, which ended in June of 2000. |
| − | The Eritrean Defence Forces consist of the Army, Navy and Air Force, with approximately 320,000 active duty personnel, making it one of the largest military forces in Africa. | + | The armed forces of Eritrea were formed out of paramilitary elements of the Eritrean People's Liberation Front (EPLF), which after 1994 became a strictly political entity known as the People's Front for Democracy and Justice (ህዝባዊ ግንባር ንደሞክራስን ፍትሕን). Today, the Eritrean Defence Forces (ሓይልታት ምክልኻል ኤርትራ) consist of the Army, Navy, and Air Force, with approximately 320,000 active duty personnel, making it one of the largest military forces in Africa. All citizens are required to fulfill eighteen months of compulsory national service. A People's Militia ''(Hizbawi Serawit)'' was created in 2012 to provide some military training to civilians, in the event of another war or national crisis requiring a call to arms. |
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== Eritrean Camouflage Patterns == | == Eritrean Camouflage Patterns == | ||
| + | |||
| + | * During its long-standing war for independence from [[Ethiopia]], some elements of the EPLF would occasionally obtain Army issue South Korean "waves" pattern uniforms, worn interspersed with the civilian and tribal clothing that was much more common. It seems likely these were stripped from dead soldiers or possibly taken from Ethiopian POWs as they appear very rarely in photographs. | ||
| + | |||
| + | [[File:ethiopia1.jpg|200px]] | ||
| + | [[File:eplf-rok.png|200px]] | ||
* Since its formation in 1991, Eritrea has primarily utilized common camouflage patterns found in many other countries and produced by Asian manufacturers. Of these, copies of the [[USA|US]] six-color [[chocolate chip]] desert pattern seem to be the most common. | * Since its formation in 1991, Eritrea has primarily utilized common camouflage patterns found in many other countries and produced by Asian manufacturers. Of these, copies of the [[USA|US]] six-color [[chocolate chip]] desert pattern seem to be the most common. | ||
| + | [[File:usa5.jpg|200px]] | ||
[[File:eritrea1.jpg|200px]] | [[File:eritrea1.jpg|200px]] | ||
| + | [[File:eritrea-chocchip.png|200px]] | ||
* Variations of the standard [[chocolate chip]] desert pattern have also been documented in use at various times, including some with more yellow or pink base tones. | * Variations of the standard [[chocolate chip]] desert pattern have also been documented in use at various times, including some with more yellow or pink base tones. | ||
| Line 32: | Line 39: | ||
[[File:eritrea-yellowchip.jpg|200px]] | [[File:eritrea-yellowchip.jpg|200px]] | ||
| − | * Equally common is a copy of the US m81 [[woodland]] camouflage pattern, seen here. | + | * Equally common is a copy of the US m81 [[woodland]] camouflage pattern, seen here, in service from 1991 and into the 2020s. |
[[File:eritrea2.jpg|200px]] | [[File:eritrea2.jpg|200px]] | ||
| + | [[File:eritrea-woodland.png|200px]] | ||
| − | * A variant [[woodland]] pattern, seen here, has a much more greenish-tone to it. | + | * A variant [[woodland]] pattern, seen here, has a much more greenish-tone to it. This design is documented primarily in photographs from 1999, and may reflect a single contract with a foreign supplier. |
| − | [[File: | + | [[File:eritrea-woodlandvariant.png|200px]] |
| − | Since the turn of the century, | + | * Since the turn of the century, a copy of the [[France|French CE woodland]] has also been incorporated into the EDF, although use of conventional m81 woodland pattern has continued. |
[[File:eritrea-cewoodland.jpg|200px]] | [[File:eritrea-cewoodland.jpg|200px]] | ||
| + | |||
| + | * Another pattern introduced in the early 2000s is a copy of the [[USA|US tricolor desert]] camouflage design. This appears to have replaced the older "chocolate chip" variants completely. | ||
| + | |||
| + | [[File:china35.jpg|200px]] | ||
[[File:eritrea-desert.jpg|200px]] | [[File:eritrea-desert.jpg|200px]] | ||
| − | |||
* As recently as 2020, a unique pixelated design has appeared on military personnel of the EDF. The design incorporates larger than normal pixelated shapes in black, medium green, and olive green on a khaki colored background. This does not appear to be a copy of another country's design, but something unique to Eritrean forces, and yet its appearance is very spartan. Use may be restricted to a single unit. | * As recently as 2020, a unique pixelated design has appeared on military personnel of the EDF. The design incorporates larger than normal pixelated shapes in black, medium green, and olive green on a khaki colored background. This does not appear to be a copy of another country's design, but something unique to Eritrean forces, and yet its appearance is very spartan. Use may be restricted to a single unit. | ||
Latest revision as of 17:37, 27 November 2025
Eritrea
The present day State of Eritrea was home to the ancient kingdom of D'mt in the 7th and 8th centuries BCE, and several smaller successor kingdoms thereafter. Italy invaded and occupied the nation in 1890, where it became a part of Italian East Africa (along with Ethiopia and Italian Somaliland). When Italian forces were expelled in 1941, Eritrea came under British mandate. In 1952, with encouragement from the United States, however, Eritrea was federated with Ethiopia under UN mandate, effectively becoming a province under Ethiopian administration. This sparked an independence movement and brought about the Eritrean War of Independence, which lasted from 1961 until 1991 when the (Marxist-Leninist) Eritrean People's Liberation Front (EPLF) defeated Ethiopian forces in Eritrea and took control of the country. In April 1993, in a referendum supported by Ethiopia, the Eritrean people voted almost unanimously in favor of independence. The nation again went to war with Ethiopia in 1998 over a border dispute, which ended in June of 2000.
The armed forces of Eritrea were formed out of paramilitary elements of the Eritrean People's Liberation Front (EPLF), which after 1994 became a strictly political entity known as the People's Front for Democracy and Justice (ህዝባዊ ግንባር ንደሞክራስን ፍትሕን). Today, the Eritrean Defence Forces (ሓይልታት ምክልኻል ኤርትራ) consist of the Army, Navy, and Air Force, with approximately 320,000 active duty personnel, making it one of the largest military forces in Africa. All citizens are required to fulfill eighteen months of compulsory national service. A People's Militia (Hizbawi Serawit) was created in 2012 to provide some military training to civilians, in the event of another war or national crisis requiring a call to arms.
Eritrean Camouflage Patterns
- During its long-standing war for independence from Ethiopia, some elements of the EPLF would occasionally obtain Army issue South Korean "waves" pattern uniforms, worn interspersed with the civilian and tribal clothing that was much more common. It seems likely these were stripped from dead soldiers or possibly taken from Ethiopian POWs as they appear very rarely in photographs.
- Since its formation in 1991, Eritrea has primarily utilized common camouflage patterns found in many other countries and produced by Asian manufacturers. Of these, copies of the US six-color chocolate chip desert pattern seem to be the most common.
- Variations of the standard chocolate chip desert pattern have also been documented in use at various times, including some with more yellow or pink base tones.
- Equally common is a copy of the US m81 woodland camouflage pattern, seen here, in service from 1991 and into the 2020s.
- A variant woodland pattern, seen here, has a much more greenish-tone to it. This design is documented primarily in photographs from 1999, and may reflect a single contract with a foreign supplier.
- Since the turn of the century, a copy of the French CE woodland has also been incorporated into the EDF, although use of conventional m81 woodland pattern has continued.
- Another pattern introduced in the early 2000s is a copy of the US tricolor desert camouflage design. This appears to have replaced the older "chocolate chip" variants completely.
- As recently as 2020, a unique pixelated design has appeared on military personnel of the EDF. The design incorporates larger than normal pixelated shapes in black, medium green, and olive green on a khaki colored background. This does not appear to be a copy of another country's design, but something unique to Eritrean forces, and yet its appearance is very spartan. Use may be restricted to a single unit.
- Circa 2022, the Eritrean Navy began issuing its own digital camouflage pattern to some personnel, having an overall pale blue color palette.
