Ethiopian Premier Abiy Ahmed threatens war if TPLF won't register as a party

Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed has threatened to once again go to war with the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF) if it does not register with the National Election Board of Ethiopia (NEBE), Addis Standard reported on Wednesday.

"TPLF will not be eligible to participate in the upcoming 7th national election or form a government if they don't register," said the Ethiopian Premier, who was once a child soldier affiliated with the Oromo People's Democratic Organization (OPDO).

Abiy, a Nobel Peace Prize recipient who waged war on the Tigrayan people in November 2020, made this statement in Ethiopia during a meeting with officials from various political parties.

He reiterated that the TPLF would not be eligible to participate in the upcoming 7th national election or form a government unless they register.

The NEBE revoked TPLF's legal identity following the outbreak of the Tigray war, citing the party's engagement in "armed violence against the government" as the reason for the revocation, according to Addis Standard.

Subsequently, in May 2021, the House of Peoples' Representatives classified the TPLF as a terrorist organization.

The premier mentioned that legislation has been passed to enable the TPLF and similar groups to register legally, as a gesture of goodwill from the Addis Ababa government.

However, he added, "It won't make a difference unless the Election Board accepts TPLF and calls it a legal party," because without registration, the TPLF will not be able to form a government.

More than two million of Tigray's six million people had fled their homes since 4 November, when Abiy ordered an invasion after the TPLF fighters captured federal military bases.

Tens of thousands of them have sought refuge in neighbouring Sudan.

The TPLF was designated a terrorist organization by Addis Ababa.

A ceasefire agreement was reached in November 2022 in Pretoria after a week of negotiations. The ceasefire halted a two-year civil war that had devastated much of northern Ethiopia, but tensions have since started to resurface.

The talks were mediated by former Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta and former Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo under the auspices of the African Union.

As Africa's second-most populous country, Ethiopia is pivotal to stability in the Horn of Africa.