Eritrean football players allegedly abscond

Seven players from the Eritrean football squad that scored a historic victory in eSwatini last week have failed to return home, a source close to the team told BBC News. While some of their teammates flew back from SA, the seven are said to have absconded. There have been several cases when Eritreans competing in various sports have not returned home after international fixtures. Rights groups have described the government in Asmara as highly repressive – a charge which the authorities reject. Despite its small population, hundreds of thousands of Eritreans have sought asylum abroad. The news of the players absconding will come as a blow to the team, which, following its 2-1 win in eSwatini and 4-1 victory on aggregate, was celebrating a return to the qualifying group stages for the Africa Cup of Nations for the first time in 19 years. Only 10 of the 24-man squad were based in Eritrea and just three of those players, including team captain Ablelom Teklezghi, have now returned. While it is unclear where the missing players have gone, reports say some of them have been seen in SA.

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