U.S. lifts sanctions targeting Eritrea’s ruling party and the military

The United States lifted sanctions against Eritrea’s ruling party and the military that the Biden administration imposed, according to the U.S. Department of the Treasury.

The sanctions were issued in 2021 over humanitarian and human rights concerns in the northern Ethiopian region of Tigray, which suffered violent conflict at the time. Eritrean forces backed Ethiopian troops against fighters loyal to the regional government of Tigray in the conflict that ended with a peace accord in November 2022.

The Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control said in a Friday (September 18, 2026) statement that sanctions against some Eritrean individuals, including Hagos Ghebrehiwet, a key financial official, have been removed. The state-owned Red Sea Trading Corporation was also on the list.

Eritrean Information Minister Yemane Gebremeskel said the sanctions had been unwarranted and caused considerable damage to his country.

“In this respect, we welcome the gesture and remedial measures by the Trump Administration,” Mr. Gebremeskel told The Associated Press.

The sanctions delisting comes amid heightened concern about security in the Red Sea.

Recent Houthi advances in Yemen have increased threats to shipping through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, while Eritrea’s southern coast and the port of Assab lie near the strategic passage connecting the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden.