After two years of civil strife, the Ethiopian government and Tigrayan forces have ended their conflict.
This unexpected deal was reached on Wednesday to end the war, which has resulted in thousands of deaths. BBC reported that both sides agreed to permanently halt the war and they also agreed to a disarmament plan and restoration of different services. The war has left many without food, and now aid deliveries will be able to resume.
According to BBC, the war between the Tigrayan People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) and the Ethiopian government began on Nov. 4, 2020. TPLF had seized military barracks, which led the Ethiopian government to seize the region and war ensued.
BBC reported that Tigray was isolated from the world during the two years of conflict: “Hospitals have been running out of drugs, while electricity, phone and banking services have been cut, along with the internet. Both sides have been accused of atrocities, include ethnic cleansing and sexual violence.”
Tensions had existed before the war began. According to The New York Times, TPLF occupied the Tigray region in Ethiopia and the aforementioned conflict that started the war led the Ethiopian government, along with some forces from Eritrea (which borders Ethiopia), to fight each other.
The New York Times reported that Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed said at the beginning of the war that conflict would end swiftly, but this war left “as many as half a million people” dead and was “accompanied by countless atrocities, including civilian massacres, gang rape and the use of starvation as a weapon of war.”
After this long conflict, both parties signed a treaty to permanently end the conflict.