Four African countries call for de-escalation of tension in Ethiopia

Egypt, Eritrea, Somalia and Sudan have called for a de-escalation of the conflicts across their region, including Sudan’s civil war and the crisis in Ethiopia.

In a joint statement issued Sunday at the end of a meeting in New Alamein City, Egypt, the countries called for dialogue and a peaceful resolution of the conflicts.

The statement was signed by Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki, Somali President Hassan Mohamud and Sudanese army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, according to Al Jazeera. 

The countries declared that cross-border challenges required “a dialogue, not confrontation.”

They also demanded that the coastal states retain control of the Red Sea; a stance that appears to respond to Ethiopia’s pursuit of sovereign access to the sea and a naval presence.

This call comes amid the growing tension between Ethiopia’s federal government and authorities in the northern Tigray region; a situation that has many in the country fearing that it could tip back into the kind of war that devastated it a few years ago.

PREMIUM TIMES reported renewed armed clashes in the northern Tigray region between the Ethiopian government and the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) two weeks ago. 

The rebel forces also seized control of Mekelle and the Alula Aba Nega Airport.

Government and allied forces, however, retook the city of Mekelle on Sunday after the TPLF said it “temporarily moved out of” Tigray’s regional capital to “operate from somewhere else.”

According to local media, Tigray interim leader Abraham Belay accused the government of preparing a new temporary administration for the region and said it hopes to hold regional elections within months.

Meanwhile, Ethiopia has accused neighbouring Eritrea of directly backing the rebel alliance during Ethiopia’s 2022 civil war. It also accused Egypt and Sudan of backing the armed alliance in the recent confrontation.

Sudan, which has been at war since April 2023, has accused Ethiopia of interfering in its crisis.