Ethiopia urges ‘all capable citizens’ to fight in Tigray war
- The call effectively ends the government’s unilateral ceasefire and is a sign that all of the country’s 110 million people are being drawn into the conflict
- Deadly fighting in Tigray has spread into neighbouring areas and could destabilise the entire Horn of Africa region
Ethiopia’s government on Tuesday summoned all capable citizens to war, urging them to join the country’s military to stop resurgent forces from the embattled Tigray region “once and for all”.
The call to arms is an ominous sign that all of Ethiopia’s 110 million people are being drawn into a conflict that Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, a Nobel Peace Prize winner, once declared would be over within weeks.
The deadly fighting has now spread beyond Tigray into neighbouring regions, and fracturing in Africa’s second most populous country could destabilise the entire Horn of Africa region.
Tuesday’s announcement effectively ends the unilateral ceasefire the government declared in June as its military retreated from Tigray. It is also almost certain to magnify the toll of a nine-month war that has led to the massacre of thousands, widespread gang rapes and the displacement of entire communities, mostly Tigrayan.
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What is behind the fighting in Ethiopia’s northern Tigray region?
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