Antony Blinken in Brussels on 24 March.
Photographer: Martin Bertrand / Bloomberg
Photographer: Martin Bertrand / Bloomberg
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has approved the establishment of a special envoy to the Horn of Africa, where several political crises are taking place.
The envoy, who is due to be appointed in the coming weeks, will focus on the conflict in the Tigray region in Ethiopia and tensions between Sudan and Ethiopia over a disputed border area, the department said in a statement on Wednesday. market. The person will also resolve a disagreement between Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia over the Great Ethiopian Renaissance Dam, he said.
The creation of the post contributes to the growing diplomatic pressure that Ethiopia faces because of the continuing violence in Tigray.
On Wednesday, Blinken spoke with the European Union’s foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell, to discuss “a variety of measures to support unimpeded humanitarian access, the investigation of human rights violations and abuses, the end of hostilities and the immediate withdrawal of Eritrea from Ethiopia territory. “
Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed ordered an incursion into Tigray in November after allied soldiers from the former ruling party in the dissident region attacked a federal army camp. Four months of fighting caused $ 1 billion in damage to infrastructure in Tigray, Abiy said on Tuesday.
Income spurt
The impact of the conflict on state finances, combined with the consequences of the coronavirus pandemic, led the government to announce in January that it will seek debt relief through a Group of 20. initiative. of the country have increased by 300 basis points since the beginning of the incursion.
Defense groups, including Amnesty International, claimed that war crimes occurred in Tigray. The humanitarian group Medecins Sans Frontieres said on Wednesday that members of its team had witnessed extrajudicial killings in the region.
MSF officials, traveling in a marked car, found the consequences of an ambush on an Ethiopian military convoy between Mekelle, the capital of Tigray, and the city of Adigrat. Ethiopian soldiers stopped MSF’s car and two public buses, separated the men and women on the buses and killed four men, the newspaper said.
Later, Ethiopian soldiers pulled the MSF driver out of the vehicle, beat him with the back of a gun and threatened to kill him.
“This horrible event further reinforces the need to protect civilians during the ongoing conflict and for armed groups to respect the delivery of humanitarian assistance, including medical assistance,” said Karline Kleijer, head of MSF’s emergency programs, in a statement.
The government will investigate MSF’s allegations, said Billene Seyoum, Abiy’s spokesman, in response to questions sent by text message.
“The prime minister made it clear in parliament that accountability is paramount,” she said.