Ethiopian Envoy Urges International Support For African Union-Led Peace Process

The Ambassador of the federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia to Qatar H E Feisel Aliyi Abrahim has urged the international community to denounce the Tigray People Liberation Front (TPLF) and support the African Union-led peace process to ensure the conflict in Ethiopia comes to an end and open access to humanitarian aid. 

The ambassador made this call yesterday during a media roundtable in Doha, where he stressed the importance of peace in the Horn of Africa to the Middle East and the world. 

War broke out between Tigray's rulers — the (TPLF) from northern Ethiopia — and the central government led by Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed in November 2020. After a cease-fire in March this year, fighting resumed in August between Tigrayan fighters and Ethiopian government forces after reported attacks by the TPLF.

Consequently, the United Nations (UN) has stopped humanitarian aid deliveries to Tigray. Ethiopia established a negotiating team, 'Peace Committee' led by the Deputy PM and Foreign Minister, Demeke Mekonnen, to present the Ethiopian side of the peace proposal to facilitate an end to the war.

“The government has accepted that it is working with the African Union to mediate peace under H E Olusegun Obasanjo, the High Representative of the African Union. 

“We call on the international community to stand ready to assist the African Union and its mediation process and intensify their efforts to protect the unilateral truce so that aid reaches people in need.” Abrahim said.

“The government is appealing to the international community to encourage this group to discuss and negotiate with the government. The government has offered unconditional negotiation terms for discussions without any precondition anytime, anywhere.”

“There are six million Ethiopians in the Tigray region, and because of the conflict, they have nothing to eat and have suffered a lot. Now their livelihood is based on humanitarian assistance by UN agencies. So that's why the government has given access to international organisations so that they can take aid to the people. Recently, the TPLF has launched an offensive on the neighbouring areas – Afar and Amhara regions. This has already resulted in catastrophic damage,” he added.

The ambassador emphasised that Ethiopia looks toward the African Union-led peace efforts to deliver the best results, despite the TPLF rejecting the AU efforts. He said the country of over 120 million people, of which 70% are youth, needs peace to guarantee the development of all regions.

The Tigray region has suffered desperate food shortages and is without access to essential services such as electricity, communications and banking. 

The TPLF had dominated Ethiopian politics for three decades until Abiy took office in 2018.

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