An Ethiopian woman scoops up portions of wheat to be allocated to each waiting family after it was distributed by the Relief Society of Tigray in the town of Agula, in the Tigray region of northern Ethiopia on May 8, … more >
By Associated Press – Monday, November 6, 2023
ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia — Ethiopia’s federal government says the future of contested land in its northern Tigray region will be settled by a referendum, and hundreds of thousands of forcibly displaced people will be returned. Monday’s announcement came one year after a cease-fire ended a devastating civil war there.
The disputed status of western Tigray, a patch of fertile land bordering Sudan, was a key flashpoint in the two-year conflict between the Tigray People’s Liberation Front, or TPLF, and the federal government.
Western Tigray belongs to Tigray under Ethiopia’s constitution. But it was occupied by forces from neighboring Amhara province, which claims the area as its own. Hundreds of thousands of Tigrayans were forcibly expelled, prompting accusations of ethnic cleansing.
In a statement to mark the anniversary of the cease-fire, the government said the displaced people would be returned and the federal military would assume responsibility for local security.
A referendum will then be held to reach “a final determination on the fate of these areas,” the statement said. It did not say when the referendum would be.