Ethiopia puts Tigray under federal caretaker rule for six months
Five officials appointed from Addis Ababa replace the regional interim government. The announcement gives no election date or budget.
Tigray, the northern Ethiopian region that borders Eritrea, will have a six-month caretaker administration starting this Friday, Oct. 16, the Ethiopian government announced. According to Fana, a state-run Ethiopian outlet that reproduces the statement from the Prime Minister's Office, a regulation of the Council of Ministers creates it on the basis of a resolution of the House of the Federation.
There will be no single regional president. Command is split among four chief executives and the mayor of Mekele, the regional capital, all appointed from Addis Ababa, according to The Reporter:
- Administration and public services: Asefa Abraha Hagos.
- Economy and reconstruction: Tewodros Aregay Wolde-Selassie.
- Security and peace: Brig. Gen. Gebre-Egziabher Beyene Hailu.
- Political affairs and public organization: Redai Halefom Wolde-Selassie.
- Mayor of Mekele: Shishay Amare.
The team replaces the interim government of Lt. Gen. Tadesse Werede, whose mandate had been extended in April. It is to restore security, rebuild infrastructure, help displaced people return and promote the handover of weapons by former fighters. Until an elected government exists, Fana says it will handle only routine administration and public services, under federal direction.
As its reason, Addis Ababa argues that the 2022 Pretoria agreement, which ended the Tigray war, has failed. It blames the leadership of the TPLF, the Tigray People's Liberation Front, for obstructing it and for starting the new war. That is one side's account: none of the sources consulted carries a response from the TPLF. The Prime Minister's Office said the people of Tigray "must move beyond the recurring cycle of conflict."
The offensive began on Sept. 23. The TPLF announced on Oct. 3 that it had "temporarily" left Mekele, according to AP as cited by other outlets, and federal forces entered the city afterward. On this announcement, Birr Metrics notes that the United Nations called for dialogue and an end to hostilities.
The date of elections, the budget, the reconstruction timetable and the fate of disputed areas such as western Tigray all remain undefined.
