Ethiopia has for two weeks been thrown into a spiral of violence with the government’s offensive against Tigray, north of the capital Addis Ababa. It is difficult to know the exact battle and the number of victims, as the province is still cut off from the world. More than 27,000 Ethiopians have already fled to neighboring Sudan.
Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed said on Tuesday morning that the offensive had entered its “final” phase to retake the provincial capital of Mekele.
At present, Mekeler is still the stronghold of the TPLF party, but government forces are approaching. For example, they resumed on Monday Alamata city, 120 kilometers further south. This is the moment that Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed has chosen to begin the final phase of the attack that will take place in the coming days, he said. A necessary final attack, according to him, for the TPLF not to have respected the ultimatum introduced three days ago, an ultimatum that asked him to give up.
Nevertheless, according to some diplomatic sources, this final attack may be more complicated than expected, firstly because of the mountainous terrain on the outskirts of Mekele, and secondly, because the Tigrayan forces have proven that they know how to use heavy artillery. .
An airstrike was carried out on Monday in Mekele, near a rocket launch site, said Ocha, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. A raid that would have killed civilians in turn secures TPLF.
After two weeks of conflict, the government is seeking popular support and has asked all Ethiopians to respect a minute’s silence on Tuesday morning. A conversation followed at least around the central square of Addis Ababa, Meskel Square.
Horn concerts were also heard for several minutes. But it is still difficult to judge the real enthusiasm behind the federal troops, the conflict is a rather taboo subject on the capital streets in recent days.
.
