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Diplomats Decry Violence, Call for Withdrawal of Eritrean Troops from
Ethiopia

Salem Solomon

   WASHINGTON - As the conflict in Ethiopia's Tigray region rages on,
   international observers are sounding alarm bells about the involvement
   of forces from neighboring Eritrea.

   The U.S. State Department says it has received credible reports of
   looting, sexual violence, assaults in refugee camps and other human
   rights abuses. It cited evidence that Eritrean soldiers are forcibly
   returning Eritrean refugees to their home country.

   The U.S. administration also said it has received credible reports that
   Eritrean forces launched artillery attacks from their side of the
   border in support of Ethiopian government troops fighting forces of the
   Tigrayan People's Liberation Front (TPLF).

   "The United States has stressed the need for all Eritrean troops to
   leave Tigray immediately," a State Department spokesperson told VOA
   this week. "The United States is urging an immediate stop to the
   residual fighting and full, safe, and unhindered humanitarian access to
   assist vulnerable populations in Tigray."

   Ambassador Dina Mufti, spokesperson for Ethiopia's Ministry of Foreign
   Affairs, said the Ethiopian government has "seen reports" that Eritrean
   troops had entered the country but did not confirm it. He said it is
   not surprising that Eritrea would move to defend its border due to the
   "belligerent attitude" of the TPLF, but he denied that Ethiopia had
   solicited Eritrean support.

   "There has never been a need from the Ethiopian side to request a
   third-party involvement in the matter," Dina said during a January 20
   press conference. "The issue has been entertained by some circles that
   wanted to portray the operation as a regional-level conflict."

   The Tigray conflict erupted in early November after months of rising
   tensions between the government of Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed
   and the TPLF. The TPLF dominated Ethiopia's national government for
   nearly 30 years until Ahmed won power in 2018.

   Major General Belay Seyoum, head of the Northern Command of Ethiopia's
   National Defense Force, said recently that "a foreign army that is
   unwanted entered," during a town hall meeting in Tigray.

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