In Ethiopia, the Tigrayan rebel offensive continues in the north. Eight months after the start of the war, they captured the provincial capital of Mekele and the majority of Tigray province and are now trying to seize Wolkaït-Tegede, countries west of Tigray, captured in November by militiamen from the nearby Amhara region. They are determined to defend this territory today. Much more than a simple military issue, the struggle for Wolkaït-Tegede promises to be an ethnic struggle.
With our special returning envoy from Dansha, Noé Rochet-Bodin
Military for three decades before the return of Wolkaït in Amhara’s breast, militiaman Gete Adel is back in his hometown of Dansha. That is his greatest pride.
“Me, this is a goal I’ve been waiting for and fighting for for years. It was not just me but all the people who claimed their Amhara identity. Our society had been forced into exile and killed. Today we feel great joy, he explains.
The conquest of these fertile lands took place during the first days of the conflict in November, recalls militia leader Sefer Melese. “We liberated our country. The Tigrayans took it by force thirty years ago, we recovered it by shedding blood ”.
The recapture forced hundreds of thousands of Tigrayans into exile. “Ethnic cleansing” according to the United States. But according to militia fan Fanos Tchekole, there was no other choice. “Pests, if you do not kill them, they will return. Either they kill you or you kill them, that’s it. So I do not know, but I do not think we can live with the Tigrayans again, she says.
Tiger forces assured that they would continue to fight for every square meter belonging to them, including this area Wolkaït.
► Read also: Ethiopia: Tigrayan forces retake Mekele and several important cities
.
