By William Tucker

A small contingent of dissident Eritrean soldiers seized control of the Ministry of Information in Asmara today and called for the release of political prisoners. Though there have been other reports of a larger coup attempt to unseat President Isaias Afwerki, along with the claimed killing of the Defense Minister and the Army chief of staff, there has been little in the way of confirmation. Eritrea is a closed and repressive state often making the list of failed or failing states in several publications. This makes confirming reports so difficult that even the U.S. Embassy in Asmara is having trouble getting a handle on the situation, though they have stated that the capitol is rather calm considering the assault on the Information Ministry. In fluid situations such as this, it’s difficult to accurately report, let alone speculate, on the situation, but as more information becomes available we’ll pass it along.