Ethiopia An American envoy begins a tour to discuss efforts to stop the war, and the United Nations confirms the looting of aid in the Amhara region
Washington announced that its envoy to the Horn of Africa, Jeffrey Feltman, will travel today, Thursday, to the UAE, Turkey and Egypt, to discuss international support for diplomatic efforts to stop the war in Ethiopia, and while Addis Ababa announced the recovery of more areas from the Tigray Liberation Front, the United Nations confirmed the looting of humanitarian aid in the Amhara region.
The announcement of Feltman's tour of the three countries came after the failure of previous US and African diplomatic efforts to stop the fighting between Ethiopian forces and the Tigray Front and its allies.
Feltman visited Addis Ababa last month as part of efforts to stop the war, and Washington has repeatedly called on its citizens to leave Ethiopia due to the security situation.
US State Department spokesman Ned Price stressed during a press briefing yesterday, Wednesday, that ending the clashes in Ethiopia does not pass through a military solution, while expressing his country's desire to use diplomatic means.
Price said that what he described as the humanitarian catastrophe in northern Ethiopia remains an absolute priority for the United States, and reiterated Washington's call on the parties to the conflict in Ethiopia to enter into negotiations to end the war that broke out in November 2020.
The US spokesman indicated the possibility of taking punitive measures against the parties that reject peaceful solutions to the conflict in Ethiopia.
Battle developments
On the ground, the Ethiopian government announced that the army had taken control of 7 new towns in the vicinity of the city and had the last strongholds of the Tigray Front militants in the Amhara region.
AJ news correspondent had mentioned that the Ethiopian army, backed by special units, pushed its forces north towards the city, and this development came after the Ethiopian Prime Minister Abi Ahmed announced the control of his forces over the strategic cities of Disi and Kombolcha in Amhara.
Abi Ahmed also announced yesterday, Wednesday, that he is about to return from the fighting fronts to Addis Ababa after the end of the first phase of military operations, and pledged to continue fighting until the threat posed by the Tigray Front is removed.
Meanwhile, the first foreign media team, managed to enter the city of "Khamisi" in the Amhara region and monitor the humanitarian situation there.
The city of Shawarbet in the Amhara region, and monitor the situation there, after the government forces managed to regain control over it.
Aid looting
On the other hand, Stephane Dujarric, a spokesman for the United Nations Secretary-General, said that a large amount of humanitarian aid - which includes food for malnourished children - was stolen and looted in Kombolcha and Disi.
"Food thefts, which have been taking place on a small scale, have recently escalated into mass looting of warehouses around Kombolcha, and it was reported that this was by elements of the Tigrayan forces and some local residents," Dujarric added.
The UN spokesperson warned that these events will exacerbate the malnutrition crisis and prolong food insecurity in northern Ethiopia, where about 9.4 million people in the regions of Tigray, Afar and Amhara need urgent assistance.
At the height of the power struggle in Sudan, the specter of war hangs over the Darfur region
The conflict erupted in the Jebel Moon locality, after an incident of looting of livestock, followed by an armed tribal gathering that ended with the killing of dozens, and the flight of thousands to the neighboring country of Chad. Warnings were issued about the danger of the official authorities sending forces composed of elements belonging to the components of the conflict in Darfur, and for fear of the conflict spreading from the region westward to the capital, Khartoum.
KHARTOUM - The security situation in the Darfur region (western Sudan) has deteriorated alarmingly, as dozens died and thousands fled to refugee camps in neighboring Chad, in one of the most violent waves of conflict in recent days.
The main coordinator of the UNHCR in Darfur, Toby Harward, revealed that about 10,000 citizens fled to Chad, most of them women and children, coming from the Jebel Moon region, which suffers from an escalation of violence to a large extent.
Darfur after the departure of "UNAMID" Security and humanitarian concerns that have not been resolved by the peace agreement
Harward spoke at a press conference about 200 incidents of violence reported in the province this year, in light of the destruction of villages, sexual violence, and cattle rustling.
What are the most prominent incidents of violence?
The General Coordination of IDPs and Refugee Camps reported, in a statement seen by AJ Net, that more than 90 people were killed in the region, in the last two weeks alone.
The conflict began in the Jebel Moon locality, after an incident of looting of livestock, followed by an armed tribal gathering that ended with the killing of dozens, and the flight of thousands to the neighboring country of Chad.
In another incident, armed groups besieged Morni camp in West Darfur for 3 days, in protest of the killing of one of its members near the camp. The incident ended with the camp's residents being forced to pay a blood money of 20 million Sudanese pounds (about 44,000 dollars).
A few days ago, 48 people were killed in the "Krink" area of West Darfur, in renewed conflict between the people and armed militias, according to the Central Committee of Sudan Doctors. Several people died in the latest attack on the displaced people of Zamzam camp (near the city of El Fasher), in an incident of random shooting.
This occurs in light of a significant increase in the frequency of complaints of widespread murder and looting, within cities and villages, and on interstate roads.
Yesterday, Wednesday, the Darfur 24 website, which specializes in reporting regional news, reported renewed fighting in Jebel Moon, after a period of cautious calm.
How did the government move?
The authorities in Khartoum pushed joint forces from the army, police, rapid support, general intelligence and armed movements to the region in an attempt to remedy the situation before it was too late.
After moving from the capital, Khartoum to the city of Nyala (the capital of South Darfur state), the governor of the region, Moni Arko Minawi, regretted the victims of the violent incidents in the region, accusing the hands - he did not name the owners - of being involved in the events, to achieve their interests at the expense of the stability of the region.
What are the reasons for the growing conflict?
The journalist specializing in Darfur affairs, Ahmed Hamdan, attributes the increase in armed conflicts in the region to the spread of arms, and the influx of huge quantities of it from the troubled neighboring countries, especially Central Africa, Libya and Chad, in addition to the consequences of the ousted President Omar al-Bashir’s arming of elements of Arab origin, later known as “Janjaweed.” in the period from 2003-2008.
Hamdan told AJ Net that the spread of weapons led to its extensive use in the disputes of shepherds and farmers, to the extent that the dispute deviated from its economic and social dimension into an ethnic turn to impose hegemony and influence.
He mentioned other motivating reasons for the current conflict, such as the African discourse raised by the Popular Movement elements led by Abdel Aziz al-Hilu from within the region, or the joining of those affiliated with the civil administrations (administrations made up of tribal leaders) to the Rapid Support Forces and armed movements, which makes it difficult to prosecute them when they commit abuses.
What is the relationship of the proof measures since last October to the increase in the conflict?
The young leader of the Federal Movement in the Darfur region, Adam Jabrallah, believes that the measures announced by Lieutenant-General Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan on October 25, the military seizure of power, and the armed movements' scramble for power all contributed to the heightening of the conflict in the region.
Jabrallah told AJ Net that the military leaders' preoccupation with consolidating their powers in Khartoum prompted militias and armed movements to engage in large-scale operations to exclude opponents and control the rich areas of Darfur.
In turn, writer and political analyst Ezz El-Din Dahab responded the growing conflicts in the region to the administrative vacuum resulting from the dissolution of the government, the slow implementation of the peace agreement, and the preoccupation with political quotas at the expense of important items such as security arrangements and the formation of commissions.
As for the leader of the Justice and Equality Movement, Awad Ibrahim Daoud, he absolved the current regime of responsibility, and - in his speech to AJ Net - blamed the political forces in the isolated government, for its asceticism in implementing the peace agreement.
Who are the parties involved in the current conflict?
Ahmed Hamdan says that arms dealers are the most prominent implicated in the current conflict, calling for close monitoring of borders with neighboring countries.
While the leader Adam Jabrallah blames the militias and what he describes as war generals, calling for law enforcement against all those involved in the conflict.
As for Awad Daoud, he accused a local party, whom he did not name, of fueling the conflict in Darfur, eastern Sudan and the Kordofan region, in implementation of regional and international plans.
Where do the conditions go?
The specialist in Darfur affairs, Ahmed Hamdan, and the leader in justice and equality, Awad Ibrahim Daoud, agreed that the will of the different parties and the element of time are decisive factors in resolving the region's crisis or exacerbating it in an irreversible way.
While Hamdan warned of the danger of sending forces comprising elements belonging to the components of the conflict, Daoud went even further, with the possibility of the conflict spreading from Darfur to the capital, Khartoum