Guterres urges Ethiopian leaders to protect civilians as much as possible

Days after the outbreak of violent clashes in the Ethiopian province of Tigray, between the central government and armed rebels in the region, international calls to contain the crisis increased, especially after tens of thousands of displaced people fled to Sudan.

Today, United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres expressed “deep concern” over the crisis in Ethiopia’s Tigray region, calling on the parties to the conflict to protect civilians, according to his spokesperson, Stephanie Dujarric.

Dujarric said in a statement Tuesday: “Amid reports of a possible military attack in the provincial capital Mekele, (Guterres) urges Ethiopian leaders to protect civilians as much as possible, protect human rights and ensure that humanitarian aid to enter the region that is in dire need. “

And it raises the possibility of an attack against Mikkeli, who are 500 thousand people, in addition to an undetermined number of displaced people who have taken refuge there since the outbreak of the conflict, concern of the international community and human rights organizations.

The tension between Addis Ababa and the Tigray People’s Liberation Front, which for almost three decades had dominated the Ethiopian political and security apparatus, reached its climax when Tigray held its elections unilaterally in September, after Addis Ababa decided postpone the elections he hoped to overthrow the government of Abyei Ahmed, due to the emerging Corona virus.

Ethiopia set a deadline for the region’s leaders to surrender in favor of the Ethiopian army, which is tightening the screws in the capital, Mekele. The country’s prime minister, Abyei Ahmed, said it was their “last chance”, but the besieged confirmed they were “ready to die.”