Ethiopia's Tigrayan fighters agree to ‘cessation of hostilities’

In this file photo taken on June 30, 2021 pro-Tigray People's Liberation Front forces march in Mekelle, the capital of the Tigray region, Ethiopia [File: Yasuyoshi Chiba / AFP]

 

After 16 months of civil conflict, the Tigray People's Liberation Front has agreed to the government's request for a humanitarian cease-fire.

 

Following the government's proclamation of an indefinite humanitarian truce a day earlier, Tigrayan forces (TDF) have agreed to a "cessation of hostilities," marking a turning point in the almost 17-month battle in northern Ethiopia.

 

Tigray defense forces (TDF)  claimed they were "committed to implementing a truce of hostilities effective immediately" in a statement given to AFP early Friday, and asked Ethiopian authorities to speed up the delivery of humanitarian food to Tigray, where hundreds of thousands fear hunger.

 

Thousands of people have perished and millions have been displaced since war broke out in northern Ethiopia in November 2020, when the fighting spread from Tigray to the neighboring provinces of Amhara and Afar.

 

Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed's administration announced a surprise cease-fire on Thursday, expressing confidence that the decision would improve humanitarian access to Tigray and "pave the way for the conclusion of the crisis" in northern Ethiopia.

 

The Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF) was urged to "abandon any acts of future violence and evacuate from territories they have taken in neighboring provinces," according to the statement.

 

"The Ethiopian government must move beyond hollow pledges and take genuine efforts to permit unrestricted humanitarian access to Tigray," TPLF said.

 

The crisis began when Abiy dispatched soldiers to Tigray to depose the TPLF, the region's former ruling party, claiming that the action was prompted by Tigrayan forces attacks on army facilities.

 

Fighting has raged for almost a year, resulting in a humanitarian catastrophe as reports of mass rapes and killings emerge, with both sides accusing one other of human rights breaches.

 

According to the United Nations, more than 400,000 people have been displaced in Tigray. A de facto blockade has also been imposed on the region, according to the UN.

 

The UN said in January that a third of the inhabitants in Tigray, a six-million-strong province, are suffering from "severe hunger," with relief workers forced to transport medications and other essential supplies on foot due to fuel shortages.