ASMARA (Halbeeg)- An Ethiopian rebel group on Thursday announced unilateral ceasefire after decades of movements to depose Ethiopian government.
Ethiopian rebel group Oromo Liberation Front (OLF) based in Eritrea on Thursday raised hopes of a breakthrough in one of Ethiopia’s longest time armed opposition.
In a statement, the group said the unilateral ceasefire was made to accelerate peace talks with the Ethiopian government for a peaceful and negotiated settlement to its political problems.
“The temporary declaration of the ceasefire will take us to the final declaration of bilateral cessation of hostilities once and for all and conclusion of the conflict,” the statement reads.
OLF has been active in parts of Oromia and fighting for autonomy for the Oromiya region – Ethiopia’s largest – since 1993.
The group was designated a terrorist group by the government in 2008.
The move comes a week after Ethiopia’s parliament ruled that the group, along with the secessionist Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF) and the Ginbot 7 opposition movement, were no longer terrorist groups.
Last month, the Ginbot 7 opposition movement had announced that it suspended its armed resistance against the government.
Ginbot 7, which is based in neighbouring Eritrea, had been designated a terrorist organisation by previous Ethiopian governments.
On the other hand, the president of Ethiopia’s Somali region Abdi Mohamed on Thursday said his administration had released hundreds of inmates who were jailed for their links to the ONLF, one of the opposition groups that are no longer banned.
“Today, there is no single inmate jailed for involvement with the ONLF. We have released all prisoners under this reform drive,” said Mohamoud.
The leader confessed that the administration committed human rights abuses which he termed as “Mistakes”.
“I am not saying we never made mistakes. We did, and we apologise to our people. We need to turn hatred into coexistence and love,” Mohamud said while addressing his regional assembly.
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