Eritrea agrees to withdraw troops from Ethiopia's Tigray region

ASMARA - The Eritrean Defense Forces will leave the Tigray region, which has been hit by conflict in recent months, following an operation by the Ethiopian National Defense Forces [ENDF], leading to a massive humanitarian crisis.

Eritrean forces joined the conflict after the Tigray People's Liberation Front [TPLF] launched missiles that targeted Asmara, to the capital of the Red Sea country. It's not clear why TPLF attacked Eritrea at that time.

But on Thursday, the Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed and Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki agreed to withdraw the troops, most of who have been accused of committing crimes against humanity, especially within and outside Mekele.

Abiy Ahmed had accused the Tigray People's Liberation Front of firing missiles in Asmara, forcing him to call for reinforcement from Eritrea, when he ordered operations at Tigray, a region which is currently in opposition to his leadership.

The troops have been accused of committing mass murder, a move that pushed the international community to call for intervention. The United Nations Security Council [UNSC] called for a meeting to solve the matter, but the region is still facing a lot of humanitarian issues.

More than 500 rape cases have been reported at five health centers in Ethiopia's Tigray region, according to the UN Deputy Aid Coördinator in Ethiopia, which has warned that the exact number could be much higher due to people's fear of discrimination and lack of health services.

"I welcome pronouncements by PM Abiy Ahmed Ali that Eritrea will pull out troops from Tigray. To test that commitment there is a need for an international task force to deploy to the ground to ensure this is verifiable (drawn from EU, AU, UN, US). There are zero trusts in Eritrea," said Rashid Abdi, an analyst on Horn of Africa affairs.

GAROWE ONLINE