Eight Ethiopians who had been captured along with a group of European tourists who were released earlier today made their way back to the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa after being held for 52 days in one of the most inhospitable areas on Earth.

Five British citizens who were kidnapped in remote north-eastern Ethiopia have been spotted at a military camp across the border in Eritrea, a senior Ethiopian official said today. The claim could not be independently verified.

Britain was sending a 10-man crisis team to Ethiopia today after at least a dozen Western tourists were kidnapped in remote north-eastern Ethiopia, a barren expanse of volcanoes and ancient salt mines where bandits and rebels operate.

Five Britons are missing after 10 French tourists were kidnapped in the remote desert of northern Ethiopia, it was reported today.

Scientists in north-eastern Ethiopia said today that they have discovered a hominid skull that could be a missing link between Homo erectus and modern man.