Ethiopia Air Force strikes again in Tigray as AU postpones South Africa peace talks

NAIROBI, Kenya - The Ethiopian National Defense Forces [ENDF] continued with an onslaught in the Tigray region on Friday, even as world leaders called for a cessation of hostilities in the country, with talks scheduled to start on Saturday in South Africa getting postponed.

Eyewitnesses said the Air Force killed at least six people in Tigray following a drone strike that targeted Dongolat town, in what could raise concerns about the commitment of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed to promote peace and stability in the war-torn nation.

A director of one of the hospitals that received victims on Friday said at least 80 people were critically injured and are currently undergoing treatment. The six who were killed were mainly women and children, who have been after all victims of the 23-month conflict.

Dongolat town is approximately 30 kilometers from Mekelle, the regional administrative capital of Tigray. Reports from the witnesses indicate that the death toll could significantly rise due to several people who were critically injured in the airstrike.

There are however no independent verification records but the Air Force has been going ballistic against the Tigray people despite calls for a ceasefire. Since August, the Ethiopian army with assistance from Eritrea counterparts has killed over 70 people in the Tigray region.

Recently, the Tigray People's Liberation Front [TPLF] which is at the center of the conflict announced strategic withdrawal from Amhara and Afar regions, maintaining that its immediate target is to get prepared for an incursion in the north by the Eritrean troops.

The United Nations and other stakeholders have been calling for the immediate withdrawal of Eritrean troops while calling for the opening of Tigray to allow humanitarian teams to access the population. Melancholically, the Ethiopian troops have been targeting humanitarian teams.

Friday's airstrike comes just hours after diplomatic sources revealed that stakeholders had postponed a meeting that was scheduled to take place in South Africa with an aim of striking a deal between Ethiopia and TPLF on Saturday, under the leadership of Olusegun Obasanjo.

In addition, Uhuru Kenyatta, the former president of Kenya who was to be part of the mediators, withdrew from Saturday talks, arguing that it conflicted with his busy schedule. However, sources close to him said the African Union had not informed him on time over the talks.

Uhuru also demanded to know the modalities of engagement and the actor who are set for talks. Further, he called for the immediate cessation of hostilities in the Tigray region, adding such a condition, if implemented, would allow peace talks to commence without interruption.

GAROWE ONLINE