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The Tigray War (2020-2022)
Overview
The Tigray War was a civil war that lasted from 3 November 2020 to 3 November 2022 and is part of the larger ongoing Ethiopian Civil conflict that has lasted since 2018. The war was fought between the Ethiopian and Eritrea federal governments on one side and the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF) on the other, being primarily fought in the Tigray region of Ethiopia.
All sides have been accused of committing war crimes throughout the Tigray War, with the governments Ethiopian and Eritrea, the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF) and Amhara Special Forces (ASF) having been the focus of numerous reports and accusations of both war crimes and crimes against humanity.
Looting and deliberate starvation had been targeted by federal Ethiopian, Eritrean and Amhara forces towards Tigrayans, while Tigrayan forces had destroyed, burned, and pillaged in the Amhara and Afar regions. In a report by Ethiopian Human Rights Commission (EHRC), it was concluded that the actions of the TDF was the biggest cause of displacement of locals.
Background
The TPLF is a left-wing ethnic nationalist and paramilitary group which was founded on 18 February 1975, it start of from about a dozen men to have a membership currently of around 100 000 members. Before the Tigray War, the TPLF had participated in a 15 year long war against the Derg regime, toppling the regime on May 18, 1991, and installing a new government.
In 2020, Ethiopian elections were extended by the federal government beyond the 2020 October mandate by the constitution, attributing it to the Covid-19 pandemic. In response, the TPLF considered these measures unconstitutional, and held a local election in Tigray. The government considered the election to be illegal, slashing federal funds to the region and escalating tensions.
On the night of 2 November 2020, Tigray Special Forces and allied local militia launched a preemptive strike against several northern Ethiopian command bases held by Ethiopian National Defense Force (ENDF) in what the TPLF claimed was an attack launched in self defense.
In response, the Ethiopian allied forces launched an offensive on 4 November, with a declaration of a state of emergency and a shutdown of government services in Tigray. During the following days, a transitional government in Tigray was established until late June 2021 during Operation Alula.
Progress of the war
A war of guerilla warfare progressed from November 2020 to June 2021, in the favor of the federal government and its allies. In late June, Tigrayan forces reoccupied the city of Mekelle, mobilizing and launching an offensive into occupying western and southern Tigray during July. The TDF also began launching attacks in the Afar Region to its east, prompting the Benishangul-Gumuz, Gambela, Harari and Somali regions to join the war.
The TDF continued the move south in the following months until December, being pushed back by the the government allied counter-offensive through the month of December. Fighting slowed down from December 2021 to March 2022, eventually leading to a ceasefire from March to August 2022.
However, the war then resumed in the months of March to August 2022, with both sides blaming each other for initiating the war. On 25 October 2022, AU Commission Chairperson, Moussa Faki, announced that peace talks involving the Ethiopian government and the TPLF had commenced in Pretoria, South Africa. This resulted in a second ceasefire on 2 November, with aid allowed to flow into Tigray, federal police returning, and internet access and flights resuming.