He has named as his (powerless) vice-president Isaias Rodriguez, an assembly member known as a conciliator.

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Known as the Hellman Mansion, the home was built in 1902 for the daughter of banker Isaias W. Hellman.

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Ethiopia has made it clear it distrusts President Isaias Afwerki personally, and that it would prefer to see a less aggressive Eritrean leader.

BBC: Ethiopia's war strategy

The only known survivor is Norberto Isaias, a miner who escaped.

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"At the outset, we had the impression the negotiations were just a show, " Isaias Samakuva, a top Unita official in Europe told the Portuguese newspaper Diario Economico.

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General Raul Isaias Baduel turned events around in Venezuela when he publicly denounced the December 2, 2007 Referendum on Constitutional Reform as an attempt by Chavez to carry a coup d'etat and perpetuate himself in power.

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President Isaias said in July 1998 that this was not a matter of boundaries but of national pride and territorial integrity - it is hardly surprising the two sides have been unable to agree on a peace process.

BBC: Ethiopia's war strategy

Last week, Eritrean President Isaias Afewerki said in a letter to the Security Council that it had lost credibility by failing to force Ethiopia from the border town of Badme, which was awarded to Eritrea by the boundary commission.

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It knows any change of government in Eritrea will have to come from within the ruling and single party, the People's Front for Democracy and Justice, and, given President Isaias's personal grip on the party and the government, this is highly unlikely.

BBC: Ethiopia's war strategy