New Front in Ethiopian War Displaces Thousands, Hits Hopes of Peace Talks

Internally displaced people who fled their homes in Berhale due to the fighting between the Afar Special Forces and the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF) stand near a makeshift compound, in Afdera town, Ethiopia, February 23, 2022. Malnutrition is rising in the region, said the U.N. World Food Programme, and Afdera's camps are short of water, shelter and food. REUTERS/Tiksa NegeriREUTERS

AFDERA, Ethiopia - A new front in Ethiopia's war in the Afar region is imperiling efforts to get enemies to sit down to peace talks, three regional officials and three diplomats said, and a ceasefire declared last week may have been breached in some places.

The flare-up of violence in Afar this year came after fighting in the neighboring regions of Tigray and Amhara had ground to a stalemate and as moves were gathering pace to get the government in Addis Ababa and Tigrayan rebels to agree to peace negotiations.

"There cannot be peace in Ethiopia while there is fighting in Afar," said Mussa Ibrahim, a clan leader in Erepti, one of six districts in Afar currently occupied by Tigrayan forces.

Source: Reuters