The Ethiopian government and the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) have agreed to end hostilities for good, in a major step towards ending the brutal war that has left thousands dead, millions displaced and millions more in urgent need of food aid.
The two sides said on Wednesday evening that they would “finally silence their weapons and end the two-year conflict in northern Ethiopia” in a joint statement released after the delegates shook hands.
Ethiopia’s Tigray rebels will be “disarmed” and “reintegrated” with national forces, according to the statement. “We have also agreed on a detailed disarmament, demobilization and reintegration program for TPLF fighters, taking into account the security situation on the ground,” it said.
The agreement was first announced by the African Union (AU) High Representative for the Horn of Africa and former Nigerian president, Olusegun Obasanjo, at a media briefing following the AU-led negotiations in Pretoria, which lasted over one week.
There will be “systematic, orderly, smooth and coordinated disarmament, restoration of services, unhindered access to humanitarian supplies, protection of civilians, especially women children and other vulnerable groups,” Obasanjo said.
A high-level AU partner will be tasked with “monitoring, oversight and implementation,” he added, without elaborating.
“This is not the end of the peace process but its beginning,” Obasanjo said.
The peace process has been on point so far. In September, forces in Ethiopia’s Tigray region said they were ready to observe an immediate ceasefire and accept an African Union-led peace process to end a nearly two-year conflict with federal forces.
But hostilities escalated once again from early October.
On October 17, UN chief Antonio Guterres said the situation was “spiralling out of control” and reiterated his calls for an immediate end to the fighting in Tigray.
“Violence and destruction have reached alarming levels. The social fabric is falling apart,” UN Secretary-General Guterres told reporters.
Guterres highlighted the “terrible” toll being taken on Ethiopia’s civilian population, saying hundreds of thousands of people have been forced to flee their homes – many for the second time – since hostilities resumed in August.
He also said the United Nations had received “alarming reports of sexual violence and other acts of violence against women, children and men.” CNN previously reported on evidence of sexual violence being used as a deliberate weapon of war in Ethiopia’s northern Tigray region.
Guterres said 13 million Ethiopians needed food and support in the Tigray, Amhara and Afar regions before the resumption of hostilities, which have disrupted aid deliveries for more than seven weeks. In the case of Tigray, they have been completely suspended, according to Guterres.
“The level of need is staggering,” Guterres said.
Renewed peace talks began on October 24, marking the first time the two warring sides have met publicly since the conflict erupted. These talks came amid renewed heavy fighting in Tigray, in which Ethiopian forces have gained ground.
In a statement on Wednesday, TPLF chief spokesman Getachew Reda acknowledged that thousands of fighters and civilians from both sides had been killed in recent days by renewed hostilities and stressed the importance of implementing the peace deal as soon as possible.
“To address the pains of our people, we have made concessions because we need to build trust,” he said.
He urged the international community to support a ceasefire in order to avoid a recurrence of conflict.
In a separate statement, Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed also celebrated the completion of the talks, saying: “Our commitment to peace remains steadfast. And our commitment to work together to implement the agreement is just as strong.”
Abiy also called on international partners to help rebuild conflict-affected areas in the north.
