Speaking on Tuesday, T\u00fcrk warned that the situation remained highly volatile following recent clashes between the Ethiopian National Defence Forces (ENDF) and regional Tigray Security Forces (TSF).<\/p>\n
He said the violence threatened to worsen an already precarious humanitarian and human rights situation and called on all parties to step back to prevent further suffering.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The latest escalation comes against the shadow of the devastating conflict that engulfed Tigray between 2020 and 2022. That war, which involved Government forces, Tigray separatist fighters and reportedly Eritrean troops, is believed to have killed tens of thousands and displaced more than two million civilians. One million people remain internally displaced today.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
According to the UN Human Rights Office (OHCHR), the most recent clashes intensified on January 26 near the border with Amhara region. The TSF withdrew from the Tselemti area on February 1. T\u00fcrk noted that drones, artillery and other heavy weapons had been used by both sides, leaving civilians once again caught in the crossfire. He condemned reported arrests by both ENDF and TSF forces of individuals suspected of sympathy with the opposing side and insisted that such actions must stop.<\/p>\n
Tensions are also rising in southern and southeastern Tigray near the Afar border, where clashes between the TSF and the rival \u201cTigray Peace Forces\u201d continue unabated. T\u00fcrk urged both sides to step back from the brink, stressing that all disputes must be resolved through political dialogue. He emphasised that allegations of serious violations or abuses must be promptly and independently investigated, regardless of the perpetrators.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Briefing journalists in Geneva, OHCHR Spokesperson Ravina Shamdasani warned that fresh clashes could erupt at any moment with grave consequences for civilians. She reiterated the UN\u2019s call for all parties to recommit to the 2022 Pretoria Agreement, which laid out a roadmap to end hostilities.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
She added that commitments within the agreement, including the return of internally displaced people to their homes, had not progressed as they should and required renewed effort. T\u00fcrk further warned that rising tensions between Ethiopia and neighbouring Eritrea risked compounding human rights and humanitarian challenges in both countries and increasing instability across the Horn of Africa.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
–UN\/ChannelAfrica–<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":14275,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"news-type":[26],"class_list":["post-23583","news","type-news","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","news-type-general_news","entry"],"acf":{"short_description":"United Nations (UN) High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker T\u00fcrk has appealed for an immediate de-escalation in Ethiopia\u2019s Tigray region, where renewed heavy fighting has raised fears of a deepening crisis in the country\u2019s fragile north. ","published_date":null,"news_description":"United Nations (UN) High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker T\u00fcrk has appealed for an immediate de-escalation in Ethiopia\u2019s Tigray region, where renewed heavy fighting has raised fears of a deepening crisis in the country\u2019s fragile north. ","form_embed":"","author":"","image_caption":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/23583","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/news"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/23583\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":26507,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/23583\/revisions\/26507"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/14275"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=23583"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"news-type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news-type?post=23583"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}