Ethiopian government: Senior politician linked to Tigray region rebellion surrenders
CGTN
Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed speaks at the House of Peoples Representatives in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, November 30, 2020. /AFP

Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed speaks at the House of Peoples Representatives in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, November 30, 2020. /AFP

The Ethiopian government said on Tuesday that a senior politician linked to the rebellion in the northern region of Tigray had surrendered.

"One of nine central committee leaders of the TPLF (Tigray People's Liberation Front), Keria Ibrahim, has surrendered to federal forces," said a tweet from the government's Tigray taskforce. TPLF is a political party that spearheads the fight against the government in the country's capital Addis Ababa.

Tigrayan forces were not immediately available for comment. Claims by all sides are difficult to verify because phone and internet communication to the region is down and access tightly controlled, according to Reuters.

The Ethiopian military has seized control of the town of Wikro, 50 kilometers north of the Tigrayan capital, a senior official said on Friday, a day after the government said it was beginning the "final phase" of an offensive in the northern region.

Federal forces have captured Wikro "and will control Mekelle in a few days," Lieutenant-General Hassan Ibrahim said in a statement. Government troops had also taken control of several other towns, he said.

On November 21, the government gave the TPLF to lay down arms until November 25 or face an assault on Mekelle, a city of 500,000 people, raising fears of extensive civilian casualties.

Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed accuses Tigrayan leaders of starting the war by attacking federal troops at a base in Tigray on November 4. The TPLF says the attack was a pre-emptive strike.

The United Nations refugee agency appealed to Ethiopian authorities on Tuesday for access to 96,000 Eritrean refugees sheltering in camps in the northern Tigray region, where food is believed to have run out severely during the month-long conflict.

(With input from agencies)