PM issues ultimatum to Tigrayan forces
ADDIS ABABA/NAIROBI: Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed gave Tigrayan regional forces 72 hours to surrender before the military begins an offensive on the regional capital of Mekelle.
‘‘We urge you to surrender peacefully within 72 hours, recognising that you are at the point of no return,’’ Abiy said in a message posted on Twitter yesterday.
Tigrayan forces could not immediately be reached for comment.
A military spokesman said earlier that advancing Ethiopian troops planned to surround Mekelle with tanks and might shell the city to force surrender.
The Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF), which is refusing to surrender its rule of the northern region, said its forces were digging trenches and standing firm.
Reuters could not confirm the latest statements on the war, including that Tigrayan forces had destroyed an airport. Claims by all sides are hard to verify because phone and internet communication has been down.
Abiy’s federal troops have taken a string of towns during aerial bombardments and ground fighting, and are now aiming for Mekelle, a highland city of about 500,000 people, where the rebels are based.
The conflict erupted on November 4 and has killed hundreds, possibly thousands, and has sent more than 30,000 refugees into neighbouring Sudan. Rockets have been fired by rebels into neighbouring Amhara region and across the border into the nation of Eritrea.
UN humanitarian coordinator for Ethiopia Catherine Sozi told Reuters she hoped for the guarantee of safety and security of aid workers and the ‘‘protection of more than 525,000 civilians who live in Mekelle’’.
Foreign nations have urged talks, but Abiy has pressed on with the offensive.
In his statement yesterday,
Abiy said that during what he termed a law enforcement operation, ‘‘all the necessary precautionary measures have been taken to ensure that civilians are not harmed’’.
Referring to the TPLF, he said that ‘‘all that the clique is left with is the fort that they have set up in Mekelle and empty pride’’.
He said the people of Tigray had had enough of TPLF violence against them.
Abiy accuses the Tigrayan leaders of revolting against central authority and starting the conflict by attacking federal troops in the town of Dansha on November 4.
The rebels say his government has marginalised Tigrayans since taking office two years ago. — Reuters