[JURIST] The government of Eritrea [BBC backgrounder] has accepted an international panel's conclusion that it violated international law [EECC findings, PDF] when it invaded Ethiopia in May 1998, precipitating a two-year war. The Eritrea-Ethiopia Claims Commission (EECC) [backgrounder] concluded [BBC report] in December that Eritrea launched the attacks that sparked the 1998-2000 war which claimed the lives of 80,000 and caused massive damage to both countries. The Hague-based EECC was formed after the war ended and is comprised of five international lawyers chosen by both countries. Eritrea is now bound to compensate Ethiopia for damages caused by the legal violation. Eritrea's Foreign Ministry said Tuesday it would honor the ruling but will continue to disagree with the conclusion. Eritrea blames the war on Ethiopia's aggression and on its refusal to accept an earlier border ruling [PDF text] by the UN's Eritrea-Ethiopia Boundary Commission (EEBC) [official website] that allocated the region of Badme to Eritrea. Aljazeera has more.