NAIROBI (Somaliguardian) – Opposed Tigray and Amhara forces are mobilizing for new war in Ethiopia’s north, a week after allied forces withdrew from the war-hit region’s capital, Mekelle.
Thousands of new recruits joined the ranks of Tigrayan forces and were seen driving in long convoys through the town of Aksum this week, according to The Guardian.
It came after Ethiopia’s federal government declared a unilateral ceasefire last week, which was later described as a “joke” by a spokesman for the Tigrayan rebels.
A front line between Amhara and Tigray forces is now a likely flash point and there are growing fears over a new bloodbath. Amhara forces who fought alongside Ethiopian and Eritrean forces during the conflict in Tigray have been accused of systemic ethnic cleansing in western Tigray where they have large swathes of territory, which Tigrayan forces are now mobilizing for conflict to reclaim.
Recruiting stations in Amhara region have also been busy over the past days and thousands of volunteers and militiamen were transported to an area facing Tigray rebels. Reinforcements of Amhara special forces also arrived in western Tigray, though there have been no reports of clashes so far.
Tigray leaders accepted a ceasefire in principle this week but demanded ironclad guarantees of no further invasions in the region and complete withdrawal of allied forces, including those from neighboring Amhara region from the embattled region.
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