Monitoring Desk
ISLAMABAD: Eritrean troops have been leaving towns in the war-hit region of Tigray, locals informed AFP, as the United States (US) hailed a withdrawal seen as important for a landmark peace deal.
Fighting between federal forces and Tigray rebels started in northern Ethiopia in November 2020 and continued for 2 years before both sides inked a peace deal in the South African capital Pretoria on 2 November 2022.
Under the deal, the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) agreed to lay arms and re-establish the hold of the federal government in return for the Ethiopian government reopening access to the war-hit area in dire need of food and aid.
But the Pretoria deal made no provision for the Eritrean troops’ withdrawal, who assisted the federal government in the fight and who were accused by the US and human rights groups of some of the worse abuses in the conflict.
The US, along with the EU, had tried to put pressure on Eritrea to withdraw its troops. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Saturday spoke of their ongoing withdrawal in a phone call with Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed.
The secretary called the withdrawal as significant progress in the peace deal.
Ned Price, State Department spokesman, said in a statement that he welcomed this development, saying it was important to secure a durable peace in northern Ethiopia.
Locals witness forces leaving the towns
In Tigray, locals told AFP that the Eritrean troops’ convoys have been leaving the towns of Adwa and Shire, although some soldiers remained.
One resident, while talking on condition of anonymity said that he saw Eritrean troops leaving Shire towards the northeast. He did not know if they were making a full withdrawal.
Another local seconded him having seen a convoy of buses, trucks, artillery pieces, and tanks rolling out of town.
However, he also said that some soldiers were still present in the streets and around the markets on Saturday.
The war erupted in November 2020 when the TPLF, which had authority in Ethiopia until Abiy’s rise, attacked the federal military facilities in Tigray.
He unleashed a big offensive against TPLF, which at one point appeared near to advancing on the capital Addis Ababa.
Situated on the Tigray border, Eritrea sent its forces at the start of the war to support Ethiopian troops.
