The fighting marks the most serious challenge yet to the 2022 Pretoria Agreement, raising fears of a broader regional conflict that could draw in armed groups from across Ethiopia and further destabilise a region already strained by war in neighbouring Sudan and tensions along the Red Sea.
The president used his General Assembly address to portray Ethiopia as a force for regional stability, accusing unnamed external actors of meddling while highlighting Addis Ababa’s efforts to improve regional ties and support peace initiatives in Sudan.
He spoke to the 193-member world body hours after fighting erupted between the Tigray People’s Liberation Front and the federal government following months of growing animosity between the two sides.
“Despite continued interference in our internal affairs by adversarial elements, we have exercised immense restraint,” he said.
“Our message to forces of destruction and mayhem is loud and clear. We urge them to respect the sacred right of the people of the Horn of Africa to live in peace and prosperity.”
Forces from Tigray in northern Ethiopia launched a major offensive against the federal government on Wednesday, according to a senior Ethiopian official. Tigray’s leaders said they had entered a defensive war to counter aggression by the federal government.
On Sunday, seven Ethiopian armed groups including TPLF announced the formation of the Ethiopian Peoples’ Forces Alliance for Survival, with six other armed groups from across the country aimed at overthrowing Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s government.
Abiy’s spokesperson, Billene Seyoum, said members of the alliance had been collaborating for a while with the financial backing of Ethiopia’s neighbour and historic adversary Eritrea. Eritrea has repeatedly denied similar accusations.
A resumption of the conflict in Tigray could quickly escalate into a wider war, regional diplomats and analysts have warned, overlapping with fighting in neighbouring Sudan and further roiling the volatile Red Sea region.
A civil war that began in 2020 between the TPLF and federal forces resulted in hundreds of thousands of deaths before the Pretoria Agreement was signed in November 2022.
