Eritrean Army

Eritrean Army
Founded	1991
Country	Eritrea
Type	Army
Role	Land warfare
Size	250,000–300,000 (including conscripts and militia)[1] Military age: 18 Conscription Both men and women 18 years of age are required to perform national service. Conscription was made open ended in 1998 with no set term and many served for more than a decade, but in 2014 the government set 18 months as the limit for national service.[1][2] Budget: $290 million (2006)[3] Percent of GDP: 6.3% (2006)[3]
Engagements	Eritrean War of Independence Hanish Islands conflict Second Sudanese Civil War First Congo War Eritrean–Ethiopian War Djiboutian–Eritrean border conflict Tigray War
Commanders
Minister of Defense	General Sebhat Ephrem
Army Chief of Staff	General Philipos Woldeyohannes[4][5][6]

The Eritrean Army is the main branch of the Eritrean Defence Forces and is one of the largest armies in Africa.^[7] The main role of the army in Eritrea is defense from external aggressors, border security, and developing national cohesion. Historically, the predecessor of the Eritrean Army, the Eritrean People's Liberation Front (EPLF), played a major role in establishing and defending the country's independence from Ethiopia in 1991 during the Eritrean War of Independence. Since then, the army has continued to be involved in low-level border conflicts with Ethiopia and several other neighbors, including Djibouti and Yemen, with the most notable one being the Ethiopian-Eritrean War from 1998 until 2000, which ended in a partial Ethiopian military victory and Eritrean boundary line victory. It is widely regarded as one of the largest and more capable armies in Africa, despite the country having a smaller population than most of its neighbors^[8][9] with around 250,000 to 300,000 personnel due to mandatory national service. Conscription became open ended since the war with Ethiopia and no demobilization has taken place.^[10][11]