Hope for peace as Eritrean army withdraws from Tigray region

Ethiopia’s Tigray region, at war for the past two years, is finally looking toward long-term peace after Eritrean forces, a major party to the war, began packing to leave the battlefield.

Eritrea decided to leave Tigray after a delegation of Ethiopian government officials visited Makele, the region’s capital, for the first time since the End of Hostilities Agreement (COHA).

The CoHA was signed by the Ethiopian government and the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF), who were labeled as ‘combatants’ on the agreement. But Eritrea, which had taken the side of the Ethiopian government in the war, had not signed, something that had been a point of contention for the TPLF to disarm.

Eritrea’s withdrawal was not made official, but sources told The EastAfrican on Thursday that troops had been seen crossing back into Eritrea via Sheroro, one of the Eritrean towns often shelled at the height of the war .

read: Ethiopia, Tigray agree on modalities of peace deal

But the move could not curtail the transfer of heavy weapons by the TPLF to the Ethiopian National Defense Forces, which was part of the provisions under the CoHA. A meeting between Ethiopian officials and TPLF leaders discussed how this would be organized.

Since last week, vital services have resumed as the parties make arrangements for disarmament. Frehiwot Tamiru, CEO of state-owned Ethio Telecom, said a phone call was made on Wednesday after more than a year of communications blackouts.

“The resumption of telecommunication services in (Mekele) has enabled 61 bank branches to re-enter service,” Tamiru was quoted as saying by the state-owned Ethiopian Broadcasting Corporation.

fiber lines

Tamiru said the firm had managed to rehabilitate 981km of fiber lines, resulting in telecom services being restored to 27 cities and towns across the region.

A high-level Ethiopian government delegation led by parliament speaker Tagesi Chafo arrived in Mekele on Monday, in what TPLF leaders said marked a milestone in the peace deal to end the two-year war in the Horn of Africa nation. Was.

After arriving in Mekelle, the government delegation of more than 50 representatives and Tigray leaders discussed a number of pressing issues relating to humanitarian aid, basic services, commerce and the withdrawal of Eritrean and Amhara forces.

Read also: Ethiopia, Tigray discuss withdrawal of Eritrean forces

TPLF officials have accused the Eritrean government of trying to obstruct the peace process and urged the Abiy government to abide by the terms of the peace agreement regarding the withdrawal of foreign and non-federal forces.

“There were fruitful discussions and important understandings,” said Getachew Reda, an adviser to Tigray’s president who signed a peace deal with the Ethiopian government on behalf of the TPLF in November.

“Government’s gesture to restore the long pending restoration of services is commendable. Getachev said that none of the members of the government delegation even bothered to bring close security guards, which is proof of their faith in Tigray’s commitment to the peace deal.

He added that Tigre, on its part, has welcomed and treated its guests with a sense of respect and responsibility.

The delegation also included diplomats and heads of public enterprises, including the Commercial Bank of Ethiopia, Ethiopian Airlines and Ethio Telecom.

African Union

The meeting of the Ethiopian and TPLF representatives prepared the ground for the important visit of African Union officials.

On Thursday, the AU launched the Monitoring and Verification Mission (AU-MVCM) in Makelle, facilitated by the AU High Representative for the Horn of Africa and former President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Olusegun Obasanjo, and members of the AU High-Level Panel launched. Kenya Uhuru Kenyatta and Dr. Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, former Deputy President of the Republic of South Africa.

The AU-MVCM is provided for in Article 11 of the CoHA and includes Ethiopian government officials, TPLF representatives and the Intergovernmental Authority on Development and is chaired by the African Union through a high-level panel.

Moussa Faki Mahamat, Chairperson of the African Union Commission, commended the parties and the AU High-Level Panel for this important step in the implementation of COHA and encouraged them to continue their efforts to restore peace, security and stability in Ethiopia ” the African Union said in a statement.

The visit was Maclay’s first high-level AU visit since the war.