Ethiopia vows to replace government in Tigray as fighting escalates
Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed has vowed to restore law and order in the state of Tigray and scrap the current government there as fighting continues in the volatile northern region.
Earlier, Abiy ordered the deployment of military forces to the northernmost region bordering Sudan and Eritrea to deescalate rising tensions with the rebel Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF).
One week ago, at least 54 people from the ethnic Amhara group in Ethiopia’s restive Oromia region were killed in an attack.
The prime minister blamed the TPLF for the attack. His office said the rebel group had also attempted to steal artillery and other equipment from federal forces stationed in the region. He then ordered a military operation.
"Our operation aims to end the impunity that has prevailed for far too long and hold accountable individuals and groups under the laws of the land," the premier tweeted on Saturday.
Tigray’s regional president, Debrestion Gebremichael, accused the federal government of staging the attack to replace the regional government and assert authority.
In the capital, Addis Ababa, the parliament approved the formation of an interim government for the region.
Tigray held regional elections In September, in defiance of the federal government, which said the voting was illegal and should be held in May or June of next year.
Many senior Tigrayan officials have been detained, fired, or sidelined in what the federal government describes as a clampdown on corruption.
The regional government said a number of Tigrayans serving in the federal police and army had been sacked while others were put under house arrest.
The Tigrayans, who have influenced Ethiopia's military and political scene for nearly three decades, do not seem ready for dialogue that experts say is needed to avoid broader conflict in one of the world’s most strategic yet vulnerable regions, the Horn of Africa.
Before Abiy was elected, the Tigrayans held most of Ethiopia’s political power from 1991 to 2018.
Since 2018, Abiy's government has introduced a number of reforms, including legalizing previously banned opposition groups, and making peace with Ethiopia’s longtime enemy, neighboring Eritrea.
Rights groups have warned against ethnic violence and destabilization in Africa’s second-most populous country.
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