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Prime Minister of Ethiopia has ordered federal military forces launch a “final offensive” in the capital of the troubled Tigray region after its 72-hour ultimatum for dissident local leaders to surrender expired.
In a statement posted on social media, Abiy Ahmed said great care would be taken to protect innocent civilians from harm and said that government troops would make efforts to ensure that the city of Mekelle, which has a population of 500,000, does not suffered serious damage. ”.
“We call on the people of Mekelle and its surroundings to disarm, stay at home and stay away from military targets. [and] to do their part in reducing the damage caused by a handful of criminal elements, “said Ahmed.
Earlier this week, military officials warned “mercilessly” if Mekelle residents did not distance themselves from the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF), the local ruling party.
Debretsion Gebremichael, the leader of the TPLF, said Tuesday that his people were “ready to die” defending their homeland.
Abiy launched the military campaign against the TPLF on November 4, accusing it of attacking federal military camps in the northern region and trying to destabilize the country.
The 44-year-old leader, who won the Nobel Peace Prize last year for his peace deal with neighboring Eritrea, said the TPLF had orchestrated a “series of violent attacks” in Ethiopia to “thwart the democratization process.” .
Officials in Addis Ababa, the Ethiopian capital, describe the offensive in Tigray as a “law enforcement operation” with the aim of eliminating “traitorous” rebel leaders and restoring central authority. The TPLF says it is defending its legitimate rights under Ethiopia’s decentralized constitutional system.
So far, hundreds, possibly thousands, have died in the conflict, with up to a million people displaced. There has been at least one massacre, with reports of atrocities committed against both parties.
Last minute efforts by the African Union and the United Nations to defuse the crisis have failed. Abiy rejected international “interference” on Wednesday.
The UN says the shortage has become “very critical” in the Tigray region, with fuel and cash running out. Food for nearly 100,000 Eritrean refugees will disappear within a week, according to a report released overnight. More than 600,000 people who depend on monthly food rations have not received them this month.
Travel blockages are so severe that even within Mekelle, the UN World Food Program cannot transport food from its warehouses there.
Communications and travel links with the Tigray region have been severed since the conflict broke out, and Human Rights Watch warns that “actions that deliberately impede aid supplies” violate international humanitarian law.
The UN has reported people fleeing Mekelle, but with communications cut, it is unclear how many residents are aware of the impending assault.
The head of the Ethiopian Human Rights Commission said Thursday that “extreme precaution to avoid harm to civilians is even more important now, at this stage of the conflict.”
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