Ethiopia's Abiy Ahmed holds peace talks with rebel OLA in Tanzania
Ethiopian President Abiy Ahmed announces that his government will engage in peace talks with the Oromo Liberation Army a splinter group of the Oromo Liberation Front in two days in Tanzania.
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Troops of the Ethiopian Army stand in front of children in the Mai Aini Refugee Camp, Ethiopia (AFP)
Ethiopia's Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed revealed on Sunday that his government is now engaging in peace talks with one of the largest insurgent groups, The Oromo Liberation Army (OLA), in the Oromia region, which is the largest and most populated region around the Addis Ababa capital.
The OLA has clashed with the Ethiopian federal government since splitting from the Oromo Liberation Front (OLF) in 2018 after it abandoned its armed struggle against the government.
"The peace negotiation that will be held with (the OLA) will start the day after tomorrow in Tanzania," said the Prime Minister.
Abiy underlined the importance of these talks saying, "The Ethiopian government and people are in deep need of this negotiation process," he added, "I call upon all groups to play (their) part."
The official gave no further details on the format of the recent talks. As mediators and the location of the meeting remain unknown.
The OLA's reportedly consisted of a few thousand armed militiamen in 2018 and has since then grown in power, however, experts believe that the organization is not well-trained or armed to cause a considerable threat to the Ethiopian government.
Residents of the region were victims of massacres committed by various armed groups. Abiy accused the rebel OLA of committing 3 of these massacres.
