Eritrean Forces Exit Tigray Over G7 Concerns About Human Rights Abuses
The G7 issued a statement expressing concern over human rights abuses in Tigray at the end of last week.
Since then, Eritrean forces have begun to withdraw from Tigray, according to information from the Ethiopian Foreign Ministry, as reported by Reuters.
The G7 statement had called out, specifically, the murder and displacement of Tigray and Eritrean refugees, especially with worsening food insecurity issues in central and eastern Tigray which threaten to exacerbate the situation.
Tigray, a region in northern Ethiopia, has been the site of fighting since Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed ordered a military offensive last November following his claim a government-controlled military base in the area was attacked by the regional Tigray forces.
The Ethiopian conflict with the Tigray People’s Liberation Front is notable, if complicated, for stability in the Horn of Africa as well as political and economic development in the region. The conflict has sent refugees fleeing into nearby areas like Sudan.
The Ethiopian government has promised to take action to punish human rights abusers. An independent report on the situation is expected from the Ethiopian Human Rights Commission and the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, the G7 statement said.
Recent U.S. actions, such as joint counterterror ops and relief funds for the Sahel crisis, have shown an increased interest in Africa.
The statement was a joint comment by the foreign ministers of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the U.K., the U.S., and the High Representative of the European Union. It can be read here.
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