Ethiopia risks lengthy deadlock in war-hit Tigray: Report

Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed declared victory within weeks, but combat has continued in Tigray region, the ICG group says.

The war in Ethiopia’s northern Tigray region risks dragging on for months and even years, with both sides eyeing a military “knockout blow” that appears unrealistic, the International Crisis Group (ICG) has said. Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed sent troops into Tigray in November to detain and disarm leaders of the once-dominant regional governing party, the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF). He said the move came in response to the TPLF-orchestrated attacks on federal army camps. Abiy declared victory within weeks, but combat has continued recently in central and southern Tigray, conflict-prevention group ICG, a Brussels-based think-tank, said in a briefing, published on Friday, nearly five months after the first shots were fired.