US orders diplomats out of Ethiopia as rebels approach capital
- Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed urged people to make sacrifices to fend off rebels threatening to advance on the capital
- Nine rebel groups said on Friday they would join forces in an alliance built around the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF)
The US said on Saturday it had ordered all of its non-essential diplomats and their families to leave Ethiopia, as Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed urged people to make sacrifices to fend off rebels threatening to advance on the capital.
Nine rebel groups said on Friday they would join forces in an alliance built around the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF), which has been locked in a year-long war that has killed thousands and pushed many more into famine-like conditions.
Abiy, winner of the 2019 Nobel Peace Prize, sent troops into Tigray in November last year to topple the TPLF, accusing them of attacking military bases.
The US State Department said it had “ordered the departure of non-emergency US government employees and their family members” on Friday, and it was also urging all other US nationals to leave.
Saudi Arabia, Norway, Sweden, Denmark and other countries have also urged their people to leave Ethiopia in the past week.