Ethiopia declares truce in war-torn Tigray region

ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia－The Ethiopian government announced late on Monday a unilateral ceasefire in the country's conflict-hit northernmost Tigray region.

The government, in a statement published by the state-affiliated Fana Broadcasting Corporate and other state news outlets, said the move followed a request by the Tigray regional state interim administration.

The cease-fire could calm a war that has destabilized Africa's second-most populous country and threatened to do the same in the wider Horn of Africa, where Ethiopia has been seen as a key security ally for the West. It came as the country awaits the results of national elections that Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed promoted as the centerpiece of reforms that won him the 2019 Nobel Peace Prize.

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said in a statement that he had spoken with the prime minister and "I am hopeful that an effective cessation of hostilities will take place".

The unilateral truce is said to facilitate humanitarian assistance and promote peaceful livelihoods in the region as well as agricultural activities amid the approaching rainy season.

Since the early hours of Nov 4, the Ethiopian government has been undertaking military operations against the Tigray People's Liberation Front, or TPLF, which used to rule the Tigray regional state.

"Fighters loyal to the TPLF, who are presently dispersed in the desert will return to peace if conditions are made conducive for it, the Ethiopian government has accepted the Tigray interim administration's request for ceasefire positively," the statement read.

"For the farmer to till the land peacefully, for the aid work to be distributed free from military pressure, for TPLF remnants to return to the peaceful road, an unconditional unilateral cease-fire has been declared from June 28 to last until the end of the farming season."

However, Tigrayan forces made further gains against Ethiopian government troops and their allies on Tuesday, with a spokesman reporting they were in full control of Mekele, the regional capital. But the claim cannot be independently verified.

UNICEF targeted

Amid the upheaval on Monday, the UN Children's Fund, or UNICEF, said Ethiopian soldiers entered its office in Mekele and dismantled satellite communications equipment, an act it said violated the world body's immunity. The UNICEF last week warned that at least 33,000 severely malnourished children face "imminent risk of death" without more aid reaching Tigray's people.

At UN headquarters, the United States, the United Kingdom and Ireland have called for an emergency open meeting of the Security Council. The meeting could be held on Friday, Agence France-Presse reported.

The council has discussed Tigray behind closed doors but not in an open session. They need support from nine of the 15 council members to hold an open meeting.

Xinhua - Agencies