Tigray rebels accuse AU mediator of bias

Ethiopia's Tigray People's Liberation Front accused African Union special envoy Olusegun Obasanjo of not being impartial as he seeks to prevent renewed civil war.

TPLF authorities said on Sunday that they remained committed to peace and dialogue but had not found in Obasanjo the impartial and proactive mediator needed for the crisis.

The group complained that Obasanjo visited Tigray in August without prior notice, concrete proposals or a clearly defined agenda.

The federal government and the TPLF have massed forces on the border of the northern region in recent months, raising fears of a return to the 2020-22 war.

Obasanjo, a former Nigerian president, helped broker the 2022 Pretoria Agreement that ended that conflict. He was recently mandated as the AU's special envoy for the Horn of Africa to renew his work after many key parts of the deal were not implemented.

The federal government has not publicly commented on Obasanjo's renewed mediation efforts. The African Union did not immediately respond to AFP requests for comment.

The TPLF ruled Ethiopia from 1991 to 2018 before being sidelined with the rise of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed.