The Ethiopian government announced on Wednesday that Ethiopian PM Abiy Ahmed transferred some of his powers to his deputy, as the former would lead the army from the battlefront against the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF), which continues its march towards the capital Addis Ababa.
The Ethiopian Broadcasting Corporation “Fana” on Wednesday quoted the government spokesperson, ligisi Tolo, as he confirmed that Deputy Prime Minister, Demeke Mekonnen, will take over the day-to-day affairs during Ethiopian PM’s absence.
This comes after Ethiopian PM announced late on Monday that he planned to head to the front line to personally lead the military campaign against( rebel forces) advancing from the north of the country as a government-declared state of emergency continues to take effect across Ethiopia.
In press statements, Abiy Ahmed called on African states to stand by his government in the face of the TPLF.
The United Nations (UN) plans to evacuate the families of its international staff from Ethiopia by Thursday, while France on Tuesday called on its nationals to leave the country, whose North has been at war for more than a year between government forces and the TPLF.
UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said: “Due to the security situation in the country, the UN has decided to reduce its mission through a temporary evacuation of all its personnel.”
US envoy to the Horn of Africa Jeffrey Feltman warned that diplomatic efforts to resolve the crisis in Ethiopia would be jeopardized by military escalation.
Several states, among them the United State (US) and the United Kingdom (UK) urged its nationals to leave Ethiopia, where the international community is still unable to reach a ceasefire.
“All French nationals are officially invited to leave the country as soon as possible, “the French Embassy in Addis Ababa said in an email to French nationals.”
