Ethiopia PM promises victory in video from front row: State media | Conflict Issues

Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed has vowed to win, in what government-affiliated journalists say is his first message as he moves forward this week to lead the government forces in a year-long war against troops from the northern Tigray.

State media reported Wednesday that Abiy arrived at the battlefield to lead the Tigrayan army, handing over the reins to his deputy.

In a video released on Friday, the 2019 Nobel Peace Prize winner is seen walking with soldiers in military uniforms.

“We will not give up until we bury the enemy,” Abiy said in a written statement, adding that the military was interested. “What we want to see is Ethiopia which stands for our sacrifices – either being Ethiopian or Ethiopian,” he added.

He also said that the military had gained control of Kassagita and wanted to recapture Chifra province and the town of Burka in Afar province, near Tigray.

“The enemy has no chance to compete with us, we will win,” he said.

We want to be Ethiopian or Ethiopian. pic.twitter.com/4OVCiXk5t2

– Abiy Ahmed Ali 🇪🇹 (@AbiyAhmedAli) November 26, 2021

The images were released after the government passed a new law seeking to ban military media reports, banning the sharing of unofficial information on “military-related activities, military outcomes and incidents”.

‘There is no end’

After months of hardship, Abiy in November 2020 sent troops to Tigray to overthrow the ruling Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF). The TPLF ruled the federal government for almost three decades until Abiy took office in 2018.

The Prime Minister promised a speedy victory and government forces seized the Tigray capital, Mekelle, in late November. By June, Tigrayan troops had recaptured the entire region and pushed into neighboring Amhara and Afar.

Tigrayan troops recently also reported significant regional gains, saying this week they seized a town 220km (135 miles) from the capital Addis Ababa. Many areas in northern Ethiopia are being shut down and access to the media is severely restricted, making military statements difficult to verify.

However, with a global warning that the conflict is escalating, foreign powers are urging their citizens to leave because efforts by the United Nations and the United States have so far failed.

“When it comes to negotiating or ending a war, there seems to be a great deal of distance between the two sides,” Samuel Getachew, an independent Ethiopian journalist in Addis Ababa, told Al Jazeera.

“As the conflict continues and affects more and more people, there seems to be no end to it. There is a determination on both sides to win 100 percent.

Hunger is severe

The war has killed thousands of people, forced more than 2 million people to leave their homes, and caused untold suffering. On Friday, the United Nations World Food Program (WFP) said the number of people in need of food aid in the north of the country had risen to 9 million.

Hundreds of thousands are on the brink of starvation as aid workers struggle to supply urgent needs to the homeless in Tigray, Amhara and Afar.

WFP said the situation had worsened in recent months, with an estimated 9.4 million people facing starvation “due to ongoing conflicts”, compared to about 7 million in September.

“The Amhara region – ahead of the crisis in Ethiopia – has seen a dramatic drop in population with 3.7 million people in need of emergency assistance,” WFP said.

“Of the people in northern Ethiopia in need of help, more than 80 percent (7.8 million) of them are behind the war.”

This week, aid workers were able to distribute food in the Amhara towns of Dessie and Kombolcha for the first time since their capture by TPLF about a month ago, WFP said, adding that it was only allowed to enter its warehouse last week. .

The war has also destroyed more than 500 hospitals in Amhara, the UN humanitarian agency OCHA said on Thursday.

As the war continues, the government has stepped up its use of airstrikes against Tigrayan forces – one of the most popular military bases.

“Another drone attack on #Mekelle,” TPLF spokesman Getachew Reda wrote on Friday. “Acting desperately for a troubled government that is getting closer to the edge.”

On Friday, the TPLF and the hospital chief reported two plane crashes at the Tigray Mekelle headquarters.

Dr Hayelom Kebede, head of research at Mekelle’s Ayder Referral Hospital, told AFP that two bombings took place between 9am and 12:30 pm (06:00 and 09:30GMT), and the first destroyed two homes.

“We are still awaiting the report of the injured,” he said.

Sources told AFP that the first attack took place near the home of a terrorist chief and near a hill with anti-aircraft guns.

Abiy’s spokesman Billene Seyoum said he “did not know” anything about the drone attack on Mekelle.