Tigrayan rebels have begun surrendering heavy weapons, a key item in a deal signed more than two months ago to end a deadly conflict in northern Ethiopia, a government spokesman told rebel authorities on Wednesday.
“Tigray has surrendered its heavy weapons as part of its commitment to implement the Pretoria Accords,” signed Nov. 2 between the Ethiopian government and Tigray rebels, Getachew Reda said in a tweet.
“We hope and expect that this will significantly speed up the full implementation of the agreement. We hope and plan!” he continued.
The peace agreement of November 2 notably provides for the disarmament of rebel forces, the restoration of federal authority in Tigray and the reopening of access and communications to this region cut off from the world since mid-2021.
According to a document implementing the agreement signed in Nairobi on November 12, “heavy arms disarmament (Tigerians) will take place simultaneously with the withdrawal of foreign and non-federal forces,” particularly in relation to Eritrea, a country bordering Tigray that supported the Ethiopian army in the region. Asmara did not take part in the negotiations in Pretoria.
An official contacted by AFP, who asked not to be identified, said Eritrean troops were still present in Shire, northwest Tigray, on Wednesday, as were troops from Amhara.
An Ethiopian government spokeswoman contacted by AFP has not yet responded.
On December 26, a delegation from the Ethiopian government traveled to Mekele, the capital of the Tigray region, for a first official visit, in the presence notably of the Prime Minister’s National Security Advisor, Redwan Hussein, and several ministers (Justice, Transport and Communications, Industry, Labour). for more than two years, which is an important step in the peace process.
“atrocities”
A few days later, on December 29, the Ethiopian Federal Police entered Mekele for the first time in 18 months, in particular to “ensure the security of the institutions”.
Fighting began in November 2020 when Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed dispatched the army to arrest Tigray leaders who had questioned his authority for months and whom he accused of attacking federal military bases.
The exact toll of this assault-punctuated conflict, which took place largely behind closed doors, is unknown. The think tank International Crisis Group and NGO Amnesty International have called it “one of the deadliest in the world”.
Since the Pretoria Accords, fighting has stopped. The rebels claimed to have “withdrawn” 65% of their fighters from the front line.
But they denounce “atrocities” committed by the Eritrean army and the forces of Ethiopia’s Amhara region, which were supporting the federal army in the conflict. The Tigrayan authorities, residents and aid workers who testified to AFP accuse them of looting, raping, executing and kidnapping civilians.
As access to Tigray is restricted, it is impossible to independently verify the situation on the ground, particularly the presence of Eritrean forces.
At the humanitarian level, despite an increase in operations, the food and medical aid provided has fallen far short of the enormous needs.
Mekele was connected to the national grid on December 6th. Also, the national electric company on Tuesday announced the return of electricity across the Tigray region within two weeks.
The CBE, the country’s largest bank, announced on December 19 that it was resuming operations in certain cities and has begun restoring phone connections with the region.
According to the United Nations, the war has displaced more than two million Ethiopians and plunged hundreds of thousands into starvation.
Also according to the UN, the two years of war in northern Ethiopia left more than 13.6 million people in need of humanitarian assistance (5.4 million in Tigray, 7 million in Amhara and 1.2 million in Afar).