Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed on Wednesday vowed to defend and repel attacks by enemies after rebels in Tigray launched a fresh offensive to regain territory, tearing up a government-declared ceasefire in the war-torn region, reported Aljazeera.
“We will defend and repel these attacks by our internal and external enemies while working to speed up humanitarian efforts,” the Ethiopian prime minister said in a statement posted on Twitter.
Earlier this week, the Tigrayan forces claimed a series of fresh battlefield gains, two weeks after taking much of the northern region under its control and recapturing Tigray’s capital Mekele.
Abiy had ordered a military operation in Tigray last November after accusing the region’s once-dominant ruling party, Tigrayan People’s Liberation Front (TPLF), of launching attacks on Ethiopian military bases. The eight-month-long conflict led to the deaths of thousands of people and plunged many hundreds of thousands to the brink of famine.
Abiy said that the government had announced a unilateral ceasefire to avoid further conflict with the rebels, to provide the people with a reprieve during the farming season, and to allow aid operations to proceed in the country. He said he remained committed to peace even if it came at a cost.
“Even though we knew peace would exact some cost on us, we have taken the peaceful option,” the prime minister said.
He said Ethiopia’s enemies were “unable to rest without conflict” and accused them of using child soldiers. He appealed to Ethiopians to remain united, support the Ethiopian army and resist any sort of outside pressure and internal provocation.
General Bacha Debele of the Ethiopian National Defence Force also echoed Abiy’s warning saying that the military was ready to restart the offensive and re-enter the areas occupied by the Tigrayan rebels.
Abiy’s ruling party won the recently held parliamentary elections with a big majority boosting his power in the country marred by conflict.
