Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed highlighted the need for national reconciliation in his annual Christmas message to the country. Ethiopians will celebrate Christmas, locally known as Gena, on January 08, Saturday, reported Addis Standard.
“Because it will enable us to maintain our unity, it’s a given that Ethiopia will benefit from reconciliation,” Abiy’s message read.
He said national reconciliation is needed to end the abuses that have taken place in the country following the rebel attack on defense forces. He added that reconciliation will help thwart the “dreams of our historical enemies”.
In November last year, the Ethiopian PM had ordered the military to invade the northern region of Tigray to oust local Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) forces after fighters loyal to the TPLF attacked and killed federal forces.
The 13-month-long conflict in Ethiopia has killed tens of thousands of people and forced over 400,000 people to live in famine-like conditions. Millions of people living in war-torn Tigray, Amhara, and Afar states and several parts of the Oromia state are facing death, famine, and displacement.
The Ethiopian military remained in the Tigray region for the first eight months of the war but withdrew in June after incurring heavy battlefield casualties. Tigrayan forces took control of the Ethiopian regions of Amhara and Afar in July but withdrew early this month after suffering heavy casualties.
Ethiopia has already designated the TPLF as a terrorist organization and issued arrest warrants for its leaders. The rebels rejected a government ceasefire offer in June and vowed to dislodge Abiy’s government. So far, the African Union’s efforts to mediate a ceasefire between the warring parties have been futile. Both rebel and government forces have been accused of committing atrocities.
In related news, earlier this week, the United States (US) government announced the exclusion of Ethiopia, Mali, and Guinea from African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) due to the actions of the three governments.
