Addis Ababa – The interim administration of a troubled northern region in Ethiopia asked the federal government on Wednesday for “assistance” as tensions between two factions raised fears of spiralling violence.
Tigray is still recovering from a deadly two-year war between the Ethiopian government and the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF), which left some 600,000 people dead.
A peace agreement in 2022 saw Addis Ababa place senior TPLF official Getachew Reda at the head of an interim administration.
But delays in implementing the peace agreement have left Getachew marginalised, with TPLF party leader Debretsion Gebremichael ramping up criticism of his party rival.
As tensions have mounted, Getachew’s administration called for help from the federal government on Wednesday.
The situation “is plunging the people of Tigray into a new wave of destruction,” it said in a statement.
The authorities in Addis Ababa must “recognise that those operating under the cover of security forces are agents of a backward and criminal group… and provide the necessary assistance,” it added.
It did not provide further details on what form this assistance might take.
Earlier this month, Getachew had called for the dismissal of several members of the Tigray Defense Forces (TDF) but the decision was overturned by Debretsion.
Federal authorities did not respond to AFP’s requests for comment.
“This is not the solution at all,” Wondimu Asamnew, a close associate of the TPLF leader Debretsion, told AFP.
“The solution is to sit around the table to prevent the situation from escalating, but this looks like the end of Getachew Reda’s presidency,” he added.
The divisions within the TPLF have provoked fears of regional violence.
In a statement early February on X, Ethiopia’s Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed stated that Tigrayans “still live in fear and terror amid rumours of war.”
In late January, members of the TDF accused Getachew’s administration of “marginalising the interests of the Tigrayan people by engaging in betrayals”.
Getachew accused these soldiers of “explicitly carrying out a coup d’etat.”
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Source: AFP
Picture: X/@Lillyanapk
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