AU urges talks to end Ethiopia’s Amhara conflict

The African Union (AU) has urged the Ethiopian government and a militia in the Amhara region to embrace dialogue to resolve a renewed dispute that has left dozens of people dead and many others injured.

AU Chairperson Moussa Faki Mahamat said in a statement on Wednesday that he was following the Ethiopian situation “closely and with grave concern.”

Faki reaffirmed “AU’s attachment to the constitutional order, territorial integrity, unity and national sovereignty of Ethiopia to ensure stability in the country and in the region.”

“The chairperson strongly calls for the parties to immediately cease the fighting and ensure the protection of civilians. He further urges the parties to engage in dialogue to reach a peaceful solution,” AU said.

The continental body added that it was ready to “support an inter-Ethiopian initiative in the pursuit of peace and stability.”

This comes on the back of an airstrike in Finote Selam, Amhara region that killed at least 26 people on Sunday.

The militia in Amhara have seized control of several towns in the region, raising fears of another war in northern Ethiopia.

The Ethiopian government recently said that it had regained control of many Amhara towns that were under the militia’s control, but that pronouncement was short-lived.

The militia and the federal government clashed after Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s administration proposed de-weaponisation of armed groups in Amhara region.

Hauwa M.