MDN Northern Mining: Drill Targets Confirmed in Eritrea.

MONTREAL -- MDN NORTHERN MINING (Minieres du Nord) (TSX:MDN) is pleased to announce results from sampling programs in the Harab Suit Licence in Eritrea, East Africa.

During November and December 2005 a surface sampling campaign was executed in the Licence area with about 800 samples being taken. The objectives of this program were to confirm the targets that had been generated in 2004, to test possible extensions of the identified mineralisation, and to identify new areas and types of mineralisation. The underlying rocks are locally very well exposed, allowing good quality surface samples to be taken. The sampling method consisted mostly of channels cut with diamond bladed rock saws, which provide very representative samples. The area is underlain by several extensive shear zones with excellent potential for important quartz vein "lode" gold mineralisation.

This work confirmed two targets for immediate drilling. These are around the area of the old Tamanti gold mine, and "Area 2", located approximately 5 km to the SSW of the mine area, which appears to be on the same geological structure.

Area 2 contains intermittent exposure of small hillocks in an alluvial plain. The previous surface sampling in this location had identified consistent gold mineralisation, including one traverse covering 50 m across the strike of the shear averaging over 2 g/t gold. The new sampling has extended the identified area of the mineralisation along strike for about 100 m. The average of all of the samples in this location was 1.39 g/t gold (over a total, but not contiguous, sampled width of 64 m) with the highest value of 11.67 g/t over 2 m. The mineralisation appears to be consistent and pervasive throughout the shear at this location.

The area of the old Tamanti gold mine remains an important target, with the recent sampling producing values of 6 m at 2.15 g/t; 2 m at 3.53 g/t; 6 m at 0.96 g/t; and 20 m at 1.53 g/t, including 6 m at 2.36 g/t.

We plan to test both the vertical extent and the lateral continuity of the above mineralisation with a drilling program later this month. A new access road to site has been under construction during the last two weeks.

This sampling program also identified a number of gossan outcrops several kilometres further from the locations above, in a geological context that may indicate the presence of volcanogenic massive sulphide (VMS) mineralization. Assays of these outcrops have produced consistent but low grade gold values up to 0.19 g/t, and anomalous values of copper and zinc, together with elevated levels of indicator elements such as sulphur and barium. Another shear structure traversing this area yielded up to 2.85 g/t gold in rock chip samples.These new locations will be investigated in more detail in the near future.

The samples from this Licence are being prepared in Eritrea and assayed in Australia by Genalysis Laboratory Services. These programs are being conducted under the direction of Dr Tm Williams MIMMM, C.Eng, a Qualified Person in terms of NI 43-101.

MDN NORTHERN MINING is a Montreal-based Canadian exploration company that holds a majority interest in three properties in Eritrea, 30% interest in the Tulawaka gold mine and a majority interest in 25 licences in the vicinity of this mine, and other gold and base metal exploration interests in Quebec, Canada.

NORTHERN MINING EXPLORATIONS LTD. (TSX:MDN)