Africa
Obasanjo, U.S. Envoy Arrive Addis to Broker Ethiopian Ceasefire
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Obasanjo, U.S. envoy arrive Addis to broker Ethiopian ceasefire
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Widespread hunger is also reported in the neighbouring regions of Amhara and Afar.
EKO HOT BLOG reports that former Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo and US Special Envoy Jeffrey Feltman are in Addis Abeba to relaunch peace negotiations and broker a cease-fire in Ethiopia’s year-long war.
Chief Olusegun Obasanjo
Ethiopian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Dina Mufti said both men returned to the country on Thursday.
Obasanjo is the African Union’s High Representative for the Horn of Africa, while Feltman is the United States’ Special Envoy to the Horn of Africa.
The two diplomats stated that they urge the Ethiopian government, dissident Tigrayan forces, and their supporters to proclaim an unconditional ceasefire and allow humanitarian supplies into all war-affected regions in northern Ethiopia.
Around 400,000 people in Tigray’s northern area are said to be suffering from starvation, with barely a trickle of help reaching them in recent months.
Widespread hunger is also reported in the neighbouring regions of Amhara and Afar.
Conflict erupted a year ago between the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF), which used to dominate Ethiopian politics, and the federal government.
The TPLF accuses the government of trying to centralise power at the expense of Ethiopia’s federal regions and the government accuses the TPLF of trying to regain its national dominance.
TPLF leaders want Abiy to step down, and the government to permit humanitarian aid into Tigray.
The government says Tigrayan forces must withdraw from territory they have captured in neighbouring regions.
The TPLF have publicly speculated that Tigrayan forces might march south on the capital Addis Ababa, but more intense fighting has been reported in their push east a bid to capture the main transport corridor linking the landlocked nation to the region’s main port, Djibouti.
“Obasanjo “went to Tigray, he came to Addis, he went to neighbouring countries as well.
“He went to the U.S. … he’s investigating, he’s talking to different partners,” Dina told a news conference on Thursday.
The two diplomats should provide a public update next week, Dina said.
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