Ethiopia asked government employees in Tigray region to return to work on Monday, and ordered arms holders to abandon them, as Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s government seeks to restore normalcy in the Northern Territory after a weeks-long war.
Some power and telephone lines have also been restored in Maqili, the capital of Tigray, after communications have been cut off since the federal forces’ attack on November 4. However, there were reports of significant increases in fuel and food prices, in addition to water scarcity.
Journalists are still unable to access Tigray without permission.
Abi declared victory over the former ruling local party, the Tigray People’s Liberation Front. The Front dominated the federal government for nearly 30 years before a wave of bloody anti-government protests that pushed Abiy to power in 2018.
Thousands are believed to have been killed and about a million people fleeing their homes during air strikes and ground battles in Tigray that have exposed bitter ethnic divisions in the country.
The government seized control of Maqli, which has a population of 500,000, on November 28 and published a video last week of interviews with a number of people in the region entitled “Normal life in the eyes of the population.”
The government announced the return of voice services for mobile phones in Maqli and six other towns, as well as the return of electricity in the provincial capital. However, Reuters was only able to make six calls during 27 call attempts on Monday.
The Civil Aviation Authority said it reopened airspace in the Tigray region at 2 pm today (11 am GMT).
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