Ethiopia and Tigray agree to end Civil war

Ethiopia and Tigray agree to end Civil war

Subject :IR

Context-

Recently the parties in the conflict in Ethiopia’s northern region of Tigray have agreed to cease hostilities and end civil war.

• The Mediation was led by the African Union Mediator Olusegun Obasanjo.

Some facts about Ethiopia:

• It is a landlocked country located in the Horn of Africa, officially known as the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia.
• The country lies completely within the tropical latitudes and is relatively compact, with similar north-south and east-west dimensions.
• The capital of Ethiopia is Addis Ababa.
• It is the tenth-largest country in Africa in terms of area.
• It is the most populous landlocked country in the world.
• The neighbouring countries of Ethiopia are Sudan in the southeast, Eritrea to the south, Djibouti and Somalia to the west, Kenya to the north, and South Sudan to the east.
• Ethiopia has more than 70 ethnic groups which major are Oromo (34.5%), Amhara (26.91%), Somali (6.20%), Tigre (6.07%)

What was the Conflict in Ethiopia?

• Ethiopia’s northernmost region is Tigray which is a home to the majority of Eritrea’s estimated 7 million ethnic Tigrayans, who have disproportionate power in national affairs.
• The provincial administration, commanded by the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF), a Marxist political organisation, mounted a full-scale siege of a vital Ethiopian military post at Sero in early November, employing tanks, heavy artillery, and mortars.

Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed declared the TPLF assault a treason and authorised a federal onslaught against the area, sparking the conflict.

Tigray Region :

• The Tigray Region is the northernmost of the nine regions (kililat) of Ethiopia.
• Tigray is the homeland of the Tigrayan, Irob and Kunama peoples.
• Tigray is also known as Region 1 according to the federal constitution.
• Its capital and largest city is Mekelle.
• Tigray is bordered by Eritrea to the north, Sudan to the west, the Amhara Region to the south and the Afar Region to the east and south east.