Ethiopia freezes rebels’ bank accounts

ETHIOPIA has frozen the bank accounts of 34 institutions of the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) which governs the rebellious northern region, state-affiliated Fana TV said yesterday.

There was no immediate confirmation from the federal government, which launched a military offensive in Tigray two weeks ago, nor a reaction from the TPLF to the Fana report which cited the attorney-general and named construction, trading, engineering, printing, electrical and bus companies among those affected.

Africa’s youngest leader and 2019 Nobel Peace Prize winner, Abiy Ahmed, launched air strikes and a ground offensive on November 4 after accusing the local ruling party in the northern region, the TPLF, of armed revolt. Tigrayan leaders said Ahmed, 44, who comes from the largest ethnic group, the Oromo, has persecuted and purged them from government and security positions since taking office in 2018.

The committee that awarded the Nobel Peace Prize to the Ethiopian prime minister said yesterday that it was deeply concerned about the conflict in Tigray region and called on all parties to end violence.

Hundreds have died, thousands have fled to Sudan, and there have been accusations of atrocities since Ahmed launched an offensive two weeks ago against the local rulers of Tigray. “The Norwegian Nobel Committee follows the developments in Ethiopia closely, and is concerned,” said a statement from the committee, which rarely expresses views about the actions of past Nobel laureates.

Ahmed won the award for making peace with Eritrea after a devastating 1998-2000 war and then lengthy stand-off on the border.

“It repeats today what it has stated before, namely that it is the responsibility of all the involved parties to end the escalating violence and to solve disagreements and conflicts by peaceful means,” the committee added.

This year’s Nobel Peace Prize to the UN World Food Programme will be awarded in Oslo on December 10, the anniversary of the death of Swedish industrialist Alfred Nobel, who founded the awards in his 1895 will.