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Heavy casualties have been reported in ongoing clashes between the Ethiopian army and troops loyal to the ruling party in the restless northern province of Tigray.
At least six people were killed and 60 injured in just one location along the Tigray border, Doctors Without Borders said on Saturday, and a medical official said nearly 100 government soldiers had been treated for gunshot wounds in a hospital in the northern Amhara region. .
Ethiopian Prime Minister and winner of last year’s Nobel Peace Prize, Abiy Ahmed, sent federal troops and planes to Tigray on Wednesday in a major escalation of a long-running dispute.
The fighting has brought Africa’s second most populous nation to the brink of what analysts say could be a long and bloody civil war.
Abiy and military leaders have touted the successes of Ethiopian soldiers, but a communications blackout in the region has made their accounts difficult to verify. Both parties have access to heavy weapons, armor, and considerable ammunition stocks.
Abiy also replaced his army chief on Sunday and appointed deputy chief Berhanu Jula to take over the Ethiopian National Defense Force. The move was part of a broader shakeup that appeared to be aimed at bringing Operation Tigray’s most vocal supporters to the forefront.
Ambulances can often be seen transporting wounded fighters to hospital on the roads of northern Amhara, and there have been eyewitness reports of militia funerals.
“We have had 98 cases. All of them are soldiers of the national army, ”said a doctor from the town of Sanja, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
He said that there were no fatalities at the hospital, but that the most serious cases were transferred to larger hospitals in the city of Gondar and elsewhere.
Reports of soldiers killed and wounded have risen in recent days in Amhara, where an aid worker said three had died and 35 had been treated on Saturday. Five died and 105 were injured on Friday.
Countries in the region fear the fighting could spark an all-out civil war and destabilize the Horn of Africa, one of the most fragile regions on the continent.
The UN has warned of a major humanitarian crisis if up to 9 million people flee the total fighting or if Tigray remains isolated from the world.
In a televised speech on Sunday, Abiy accused Tigray regional leaders of preparing for war with the federal government since 2018. The group had diverted development funds to buy weapons and train militias, he said.
A high-ranking general told a state newspaper that several places in Tigray are now under the control of the federal army. “The army has destroyed all the heavy weapons controlled by the infidel group. Now it is moving forward, ”he said.
The Tigray People’s Liberation Front dominated politics in Ethiopia for nearly three decades before Abiy came to power in 2018 after anti-government protests. Now he only controls his province of origin.
Tigray leaders have complained of being an unfair target in corruption trials, removed from the highest positions and scapegoats for the country’s troubles under Abiy.
The long-standing dispute grew more intense after Tigray held its own elections in September in defiance of the Abiyan government, which had decided to postpone national elections due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Parliamentarians voted Saturday to suspend Tigray’s leaders and install an interim administration in the province.
In the capital Addis Ababa, the mayor announced on Sunday that 10 senior officials from the city of Tigray had been arrested, accusing them of “betraying the people” and working “to destabilize the peace in our city and participate in cruel and terrorist motives. ”.
But in a Twitter post on Sunday, Abiy called on Ethiopians to avoid discriminating against Tigrayans, who make up about 6% of the country’s 110 million people. “I would like to reiterate that no brother or sister of Tigrayan should be the victim of illegal acts based on identity, and this responsibility falls on all Ethiopians,” he said.
Ethiopian authorities have not yet formally responded to a request for dialogue from UN Secretary General António Guterres.
