Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Addis Ababa (Agenzia Fides) - The African Union has set a new date for October 24 for peace talks on the war in Tigray.
The news was also reported by Redwan Hussein, National Security Advisor to Prime Minister Abiy, confirming his willingness to participate in the talks set by the African Union to be held in South Africa. The talks had previously been scheduled for October 8, but were postponed due to logistical and technical problems (see Fides, 6/10/2022). As in the previous call, Eritrea was excluded.
Meanwhile, the advance of Eritrean troops, the Ethiopian federal army and the Amara in Tigray continues on the ground and, from the few reports that have leaked out, it appears that 500,000 people have fled the northern cities, wandering in desperate conditions, without food, water, heading south.
It is difficult to calculate the number of dead since the beginning of this war; the hypothesis is that there could be hundreds of thousands among the civilian population.
The United Nations, the African Union, the United States and other countries have called on all parties involved in the conflict to cease hostilities, but one of the biggest obstacles to the peace process is the strong military presence of Eritrean troops in the conflict. In the country, one of the most closed in the world, it seems that the forced recruitment of the population to be sent to the front seems to continue.
The Ethiopian federal army has begun to distribute the first humanitarian aid in the reconquered areas, but it seems that the distribution is complicated by the mistrust of the local populations. Meanwhile, a private UN Security Council meeting on the war in Ethiopia will be held today. (GF) (Agenzia Fides, 21/10/2022)
