US asks Eritrea to withdraw troops from Ethiopia's Tigray region

The United States has said that it has "credible reports" that Eritrean troops are in Ethiopia's Tigray region, calling Asmara to withdraw them "immediately."

"We are aware of credible reports of Eritrean military involvement in Tigray and view this as a grave development," a State Department spokesperson said.

"We urge that any such troops be withdrawn immediately."

Eritrea's role in Tigray 

Eritrea has come under rocket fire at least three times since Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed launched an offensive on November 4 in its dissident-led northern region.

The rocket attacks were seen as a way to internationalise the conflict by drawing in Eritrea's authoritarian regime, which has historic tensions with Ethiopia but has found common cause with Abiy against the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF).

The United States earlier applauded Eritrea for showing restraint after the rocket attacks and said it had been in contact with the regime, one of the world's most secretive.

Abiy ordered the offensive following alleged attacks in Tigray on federal military camps.

Abiy declared victory on November 28 but access remains tightly controlled and the TPLF – which had dominated Ethiopian politics for nearly three decades until 2018 – has vowed to keep up its fight.

READ MORE: UN: Global displacement toll beyond 80M as more people flee 2020 conflicts

Calls for humanitarian access

The State Department also voiced alarm over "reports of human rights violations and abuses in the region." 

"We and other international partners continue to urge an independent investigation of the reports and accountability for those found responsible," the spokesperson said.

"We continue to urge all parties to restore peace, protect civilians – including refugees – and allow unhindered humanitarian access in Tigray."

The United States is allied with Ethiopia but has increasingly voiced alarm over the humanitarian consequences of the offensive, including the flight of refugees to neighbouring Sudan, whose new civilian-backed government is trying to turn the page on decades of conflict.

Aid agencies say four staff killed

Meanwhile, two international aid agencies have said four staff members were killed during last month's fighting in Tigray region.

The Danish Refugee Council (DRC) reported the deaths of three security guards, while the International Rescue Committee (IRC) said one of its staff members had been killed.

An estimated 600,000 people in Tigray were dependent on food aid before the fighting began, including 96,000 refugees from neighbouring Eritrea.

READ MORE: UN says Ethiopia's conflict has 'appalling' impact on civilians

DRC said it was "deeply saddened to confirm the death of three colleagues," adding that its "workers are at the forefront of the humanitarian imperative to provide assistance to those in need.

"Sadly, due to the lack of communications and ongoing insecurity in the region, it has not yet been possible to reach their families," a statement said.

In another statement, IRC said it "regrets to confirm the killing of a staff member in Hitsats Refugee Camp in Shire."

Thousands have been killed since fighting began, according to the International Crisis Group think tank, and around 50,000 people have fled to refugee camps across the border in Sudan.

Ethiopia insists it will control aid 

On Friday, PM Abiy insisted that his government would take the lead in delivering aid to Tigray.

The United Nations and aid agencies have been unable to access the region since the start of fighting and are deeply worried over the plight of civilians and refugees – as well as their own staff on the ground – and have called for unfettered access.

Abiy said that his government was capable of providing humanitarian assistance, and would be in charge of what aid was delivered and where.

"The delivery of assistance lies within a coordination framework under the federal government's overall authority," he said.

Abiy added that, because of ongoing insecurity, "access will be coordinated in consultation with the federal government."

An agreement last week to allow the UN and aid agencies access to Tigray foundered, deepening international alarm.

Ethiopia has bridled at suggestions that outsiders might play a leading role in assisting a population that suffered under nearly a month of conflict between federal and regional forces.

The government has repeatedly insisted that its "rule of law operations" in Tigray are aimed solely at the TPLF leadership, not Tigrayan civilians.

READ MORE: Ethiopia’s Tigray ‘too volatile’ to dispatch humanitarian convoys

Ethiopia returns refugees who fled Tigray 

Meanwhile, in a development the United Nations called "disturbing," Ethiopia on Friday said it is returning thousands of refugees who ran from camps in its Tigray region as war swept through, putting them on buses back to the border area with Eritrea, the country the refugees originally fled.

Ethiopia's government said its completed military offensive against the now-fugitive Tigray regional government "was not a direct threat" to the 96,000 "misinformed" Eritrean refugees.

The United Nations refugee chief recently warned that the reported targeting of Eritrean refugees, if confirmed, "would be major violations of international norms." 

Ethiopia has denied the involvement of Eritrean troops, but Tigray residents who fled into Sudan have asserted that gunfire came from the direction of Eritrea as the conflict began.

"We received alarming messages from Eritreans living abroad and when we looked into them, ascertained that several hundred refugees had been put on buses this morning to be returned to the Tigray region," the UN refugee agency said on Friday. 

"We had not been informed in advance by the government."

READ MORE: Ethiopia rejects independent probes into Tigray conflict