Ethiopia announces instalment of interim government in Tigray — SkimNews
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- PM Abiy Ahmed announced on Friday that a six-month interim government will take control of Tigray, pledging free elections will follow once it creates a "stable political situation."
- Ethiopia has appointed five officials to administer Tigray, including the mayor of Mekelle, who will carry out "directives and instructions" delivered directly from the federal government in Addis Ababa.
- The TPLF launched an ambitious September offensive in alliance with several other armed groups aimed at toppling Abiy's government, but its fighters surrendered in Mekelle in early October after losing Tigray's major cities.
- Eritrean troops who had entered Tigray withdrew after heavy drone strikes from Ethiopian armed forces; Ethiopia has accused Eritrea of backing the TPLF, a charge Eritrea denies.
- The 2020-2022 war between federal forces (then backed by Eritrea) and the TPLF killed almost 600,000 people, and a subsequent peace deal collapsed in part because promises on returning displaced people and TPLF disarmament went unfulfilled.
- US Secretary of State Marco Rubio urged both Ethiopia and Eritrea to "de-escalate" during a Wednesday phone call with Abiy amid mutual accusations of inciting war.
Why it matters: Tigray's administration is now run by federally appointed officials receiving directives from Addis Ababa — a direct-rule arrangement that reverses the regional autonomy the TPLF held from 1991 to 2018. With the TPLF's September offensive repelled and Eritrea accused (denied) of backing it, the failed peace-deal triggers of displacement and disarmament remain unresolved, and the US has felt compelled to publicly urge de-escalation between Ethiopia and Eritrea.
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