Conflict in Tigray: Amhara militiamen ready to do anything to defend Wolkaït-Tegede
Audio 01:21
An Amhara militiaman in the streets of Dansha in the Wolkaït-Tegede region on July 10, 2021. AFP - EDUARDO SOTERAS
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4 min
In Ethiopia, the Tigrayan rebel offensive continues in the north.
Eight months after the start of the war, they recaptured the provincial capital Mekele and the majority of the province of Tigray and are now seeking to seize Wolkaït-Tegede, lands west of Tigray, captured in November. by militiamen from the neighboring Amhara region.
They are determined to defend this territory today.
Much more than a simple military question, the battle for Wolkaït-Tegede promises to be an ethnic fight.
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With our special envoy back from Dansha,
Noé Hochet-Bodin
Militant for three decades for the return of Wolkaït in the bosom of Amhara, the militiaman Gete Adel is back in his hometown Dansha.
It is his greatest pride.
“
Me, this is a goal for which I have waited and fought for years.
It was not just me, but all the people who claimed their Amhara identity.
Our community had been forced into exile and killed.
Today we feel great joy,
”he explains.
The conquest of these fertile lands took place in the first days of the conflict in November, recalls the militia leader Sefer Melese.
“
We liberated our country.
The Tigrayans took it by force thirty years ago, we recovered it by shedding blood
”.
The reconquest forced hundreds of thousands of Tigrayans into exile.
"
Ethnic cleansing
" according to the United States.
But according to militiawoman Fanos Tchekole, there was no other choice.
"
Pests, if you don't kill them, they'll come back.
Either they kill you or you kill them, that's how it is.
So I don't know, but I don't think we can live together with the Tigrayans again,
”she says.
The Tigrayan forces
assured that they would continue to fight for every square meter belonging to them, including this territory of Wolkaït.
►Also read: Ethiopia: Tigrayan forces retake Mekele and several key cities
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