The Ethiopian government marked the one-year anniversary of fighting between its forces and rebels in the northern Tigray region by suggesting its military is nearing victory.
Amid urgent global appeals for a cease-fire to the escalating violence, the government said in a statement on Facebook that the Tigray People’s Liberation Front âand its puppets are being encircled by our forcesâ and that âa rat that strays far from its hole is nearer to death.â
âThis is not a country that crumbles under foreign propaganda!â the statement added. âWe are fighting an existential war!â
Tigrayan forces, however, say they are advancing on the capital, Addis Ababa, and that it could fall within months or even weeks.
In recent weeks, Oromo regional forces have joined the Tigrayan forces in their fight against the central government, leading to what the two groups claim are significant advances.
Ethiopiaâs Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed vowed that his government would prevail.
Abiyâs spokesperson, Billene Seyoum, did not respond when asked if Abiy would meet with U.S. Horn of Africa special envoy Jeffrey Feltman, who arrived in Ethiopia Thursday for a two-day visit amid growing concern over the violence.
A man holds a candle during a memorial service for the victims of the Tigray conflict, organized by the city administration, in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on Nov. 3, 2021. âEthiopia will not collapse. Ethiopia will prosper,â Abiy said, speaking in Addis Ababa on Wednesday. âEthiopia will forever exist with her honor by defeating all who test her through the blood and bones of her children.â
The Ethiopian government declared a six-month state of emergency Wednesday and called on residents to defend their neighborhoods if rebels arrive in the capital.
âOur country is facing a grave danger to its existence, sovereignty and unity. And we canât dispel this danger through the usual law enforcement systems and procedures,â Justice Minister Gedion Timothewos said during a state media briefing.
Debretsion Gebremichael, leader of the Tigray region, blamed the Ethiopian government and its allies for causing the suffering in the past year.
âThe warmongers decided to continue with the war, and we entered into this war because the only option we had is to destroy our enemies by force.â
State Department spokesperson Ned Price on Thursday urged âall parties to end hostilities immediately â that includes the TPLF, that includes the Ethiopian government,â he said.
“We remain gravely concerned by the expanding conflict, by the violence, the expansion of the fighting throughout the country and the growing risk that it poses to the unity, to the integrity, of the Ethiopian state,” he said, calling on all sides to âenter negotiations with preconditions towards a sustainable cease-fire.
After arriving in Addas Ababa Thursday, Feltman met with the governmentâs defense minister, finance minister, deputy prime minister and African Union chairperson Moussa Faki Mahamat. He is to hold talks with more Ethiopian officials on Friday, the State Department said.
Feltman “had a productive set of discussionsâ with the Ethiopian officials, Price said Thursday, and âappreciated the opportunity to do so. He’ll have an opportunity to continue discussions tomorrow.â
On Wednesday, the State Department updated its travel advisory for Ethiopia to Level 4.
âWhat that means is we are advising U.S. citizens: Do not to travel to Ethiopia,â Price said. âWe are recommending that U.S. citizens in Ethiopia consider departing now using commercial options that remain available.â
Michelle Bachelet, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, said the yearlong conflict was marked by âextreme brutality.â
VOA