By Theodore Jones –
Ethiopian Prime Minister, Abiy Ahmed, announced on Monday that he will travel to the front lines to lead troops fighting rebels as the year-long conflict nears Addis Ababa.
“I will mobilize to the front to lead the defensive troops beginning tomorrow,” Abiy, the 2019 Nobel Peace Prize winner, said in a statement shared on Twitter.
“Rise up for your nation today if you want to be among the Ethiopian youngsters who will be remembered by history. Let’s get together in the front.”
Abiy’s remarks came as the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) rebel group pushed closer to Addis Ababa, taking control of the town of Shewa Robit, barely 220 kilometers (136 miles) northeast of the Ethiopian capital.
It also came after the ruling Prosperity Party’s executive committee met Monday to discuss the war, which has dragged on for a year.
After that meeting, Defence Minister Abraham Belay told state-affiliated media that security forces would embark on a “different action”, without providing details.
“We can’t continue like this, that means there will be change,” Belay said.
“What happened and is happening to our people, the abuses being meted out by this destructive, terrorist, robber group, can’t continue.”
Abiy sent troops into Ethiopia’s northernmost Tigray region to topple the TPLF in November 2020, saying the move came in response to TPLF attacks on army camps.
Though he promised a swift victory, by late June the TPLF had regrouped and retaken most of Tigray including its capital Mekele, prompting the federal army to largely withdraw from the region.