Asmara - Eritrea said it shot down two Ethiopian aircraft and inflicted heavy casualties on Ethiopian troops in intense fighting on the western front yesterday.
Ethiopia said earlier it gained ground on the western front.
"Thousands of Ethiopian soldiers have been killed in a real massacre at the Mereb-Setit front on Monday," Mr Yemane Gebreab, a senior Eritrean governmental official, said. "Eritrea also managed to shoot down a Sukhoi 27, and a MI 24 helicopter gunship at the Mereb Setit front on Monday," he said. The Eritrean official said seven Ethiopian tanks had been destroyed, bringing the number it says it has put out of action to 16.
At the United Nations, Britain pushed for a Security Council arms embargo against Ethiopia and Eritrea in an effort to prevent countries from refurbishing their arsenals, diplomats said.