More than 500 UN peacekeepers from Tigray who were deployed to Abyei, a disputed border region between Sudan and South Sudan, have asked Khartoum for asylum, citing fears for their safety. In a statement issued late Wednesday, the Defence Ministry accused the TPLF of inciting defections among Tigrayan peacekeepers "by sowing the lie that they will be imprisoned if they return home". It also said some peacekeepers had refused to return because they feared the TPLF "and not because of hatred of their country". But the Tigrayan peacekeepers interviewed by AFP all said they were worried about their safety, with one senior officer saying that other returnees had been arrested or killed in Ethiopia. The war in northern Ethiopia broke out in November 2020, when Abiy sent troops into Tigray in response to what he said were rebel attacks on army camps.

Source: Ethiopian News April 28, 2022 12:23 UTC