The human cost of the Ethiopian conflict

topic:	Peace and Reconciliation
located:	Ethiopia, Sudan
editor:	Bob Koigi

As the ongoing conflict in Ethiopia escalates, a humanitarian crisis continues to unfold, with hundreds of Ethiopians reported to have been killed and tens of thousands more now fleeing to neighbouring countries in a conflict that is threatening to destabilise the East African nation and escalate to the fragile Horn of the African region.

The federal government has launched a military offensive against the Tigray People’s Liberation Front, TPLF, which was once a dominant political force that ran the government, accusing it of attacking a military base and attempting to steal military assets.

TPLF has denied the allegations and accused the Federal government and Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed of high handedness and frequently targeting its leaders in corruption cases and blaming the front for the country’s problems.

The powder keg situation has been aggravated by a decision by the Federal government to postpone elections that were set for August, citing Covid-19 concerns, a move TPLF opposed and carried out its own in September. The federal government termed them illegal.

As the simmering friction deepens with a deadline that the government had given the Tigrayan fighters to surrender having lapsed, the worst is expected as the government threatens military action to capture Mekelle, the capital of the Tigray region that is home to an estimated 500,000 people. TPLF has stood its ground and vowed to retaliate.

Military officials have hinted at airstrikes and artillery attacks, which could produce more civilian casualties and the conflict could escalate for longer, exacerbating a humanitarian crisis that is now threatening to spiral out of control. Already it is reported that hundreds of people have been killed and over 40,000 fled the country to neighbouring nations.

Sudan is dealing with a refugee crisis with one of the camps opened just two weeks ago to accommodate 500 refugees now housing more than double that population. Sudan is still recovering from a protracted conflict that brought the North African country to its knees. The influx of Ethiopian refugees will complicate the recovery process.

As is the situation with all conflicts, women and children remain the greatest casualties. Mr Ahmed, who last year won the Nobel Peace Prize for ending the longstanding Ethiopia-Eritrea war, has opposed calls for negotiation from Uganda, the African Union and UN, terming the current situation an internal affair that the country can comfortably handle.

And as the conflict reaches worrying proportions and the number of civilian casualties grows, the international community must be united in putting pressure on the parties to the conflict to initiate an immediate ceasefire, protect civilians, allow them access to humanitarian aid and unequivocally respect international humanitarian law before Ethiopia sinks into an abyss that could threaten peace and security in the Horn of Africa.

Image by Countercurrents.org

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