Statement from the Tigray Regional Government to the G7 Summit

[africangear]

The Tigray Regional Government would like to begin by expressing our appreciation to the G7 for your engagement and leadership exhibited in the past through your previous statements on Tigray since the genocidal war began, and today, as you place Tigray onto the agenda of the G7 2021 Summit in Cornwall, England.

The Tigray Regional Government did not want war, but it became evident that as Eritrean forces, Ethiopian forces, and Amhara militias amassed on Tigray’s border that an attack was imminent and that we would be forced into conflict. The Tigray Government made considerable effort to alert the international community that Abiy Ahmed of Ethiopia and Isaias Afwerki of Eritrea were preparing to launch a war against the people and region of Tigray, and it is to be recalled that President Debretsion Gebremichael of Tigray dispatched letters to world leaders requesting their mediation to peacefully resolve the political crisis in Ethiopia. We affirm that the Tigray Government stands ready to have a peaceful solution to end the war.

Man-made famine in Tigray is imminent, and people have been dying from hunger for months. The deliberate looting and destruction have left people including the most vulnerable without food stores, seeds for planting, farming equipment, or cattle. Humanitarian relief is being blocked and frustrated at every turn by the combined Eritrean, Amhara, and Ethiopian forces. To unlock these humanitarian access hurdles and to stop the atrocities, the international community must demand the immediate verifiable withdrawal of Eritrean forces and Amhara militias from Tigray and to take bold measures to ensure that life-saving aid reaches those in need. The Tigray Regional Government will cooperate fully in humanitarian assistance efforts. We are ready to discuss how to best implement and operationalize these efforts to ensure millions of lives on the brink of death are saved.

June 11, 2021
Tigray Regional Government