Ethiopian forces capture the city and advance towards the capital of Tigrayan

The Ethiopian army seized control of the town of Wikro, 50 kilometers (30 miles) north of the capital of Tigrayan, a senior official said on Friday, a day after the government said it was beginning the “final phase” of an offensive in the northern region.

Federal forces have captured Wikro “and will control Mekelle in a few days,” Lieutenant General Hassan Ibrahim said in a statement. Government troops have also taken control of several other cities, he said.

On November 21, the government gave the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) until November 25 to lay down its arms or face an assault on Mekelle, a city of 500,000, sparking fears from a large number of civilian casualties.

Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed accuses Tigray leaders of starting the war by attacking federal troops at a base in Tigray on November 4. The TPLF says the attack was a preemptive strike.

A commitment to protect civilians, but not conversations with TPLF

Abiy, who announced Thursday that the army was beginning the “final phase” of its offensive, received African peace envoys at his office in Addis Abbas on Friday, saying that he will continue military operations in the troubled Tigray region and that your government will protect civilians in Tigray.

The statement issued after Abiy met with African Union envoys, former Presidents Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf of Liberia, Joaquim Chissano of Mozambique and Kgalema Motlanthe of South Africa, said the government was committed to the “protection and security of civilians, “but he did not. Mention any plans for further discussions with them or any conversations with the TPLF to end the fighting.

The envoys had been sent to Addis Ababa to help mediate the conflict, something Abiy had already made clear he did not want.

The prime minister, who won the Nobel Peace Prize last year for ending a two-decade-long clash with Eritrea, has said he will not speak to TPLF leaders until they are defeated or surrender.

Humanitarian concern

Thousands of people are believed to have died after airstrikes and ground fighting. The United Nations estimates that 1.1 million Ethiopians will need aid as a result of the conflict.

The bloodshed has sent shockwaves across the Horn of Africa. More than 43,000 refugees have fled to Sudan. The TPLF rockets have reached the capital of neighboring Eritrea.

The Secretary General of the UN, Antonio Guterres, emphasizes the need to guarantee the protection of civilians, human rights and access to aid and “appreciates the statement of Prime Minister Abiy reaffirming today the maximum commitment of the federal government to these obligations. “said UN spokesman Farhan Haq on Friday.

Pope Francis on Friday renewed a call for an end to the conflict and for political dialogue to resolve it. A Vatican statement said the Pope was praying for the country and called on both sides for the protection of civilians.

(With contributions from agencies)