Physicians for Human Rights (PHR) has issued an urgent international appeal for immediate diplomatic and humanitarian intervention to prevent a catastrophic resurgence of widespread civil war in Ethiopia. The call comes as the country stands on the precipice of renewed large-scale conflict, propelled by a dramatic escalation of hostilities across northern regions.
The mounting crisis has been accelerated by several alarming developments, including the Tigray People’s Liberation Front’s (TPLF) seizure of regional airports in Tigray, expanding offensives against federal positions in the Amhara and Afar regions, and a sharp increase in national government drone strikes impacting civilian zones. Further compounding these tensions is the recent formation of a sweeping multi-faction rebel coalition—the Ethiopian Peoples’ Forces Alliance for Survival—which aims to unseat the federal government.
Human rights advocates and regional partners, including the Organization of Justice and Accountability in the Horn of Africa (OJAH), warn that the renewed violence threatens to undo whatever fragile stability remained following the 2022 Pretoria Agreement. Civilians are already bracing for severe humanitarian disruptions, scrambling to secure scarce cash, food supplies, and essential commodities as transport links, banking services, and telecommunications face imminent threats.
A central pillar of PHR’s urgent warning focuses on the catastrophic toll that renewed fighting takes on the nation’s healthcare infrastructure. Research jointly published by PHR and OJAH highlights that years of systemic impunity—marked by a total lack of prosecutions for widespread atrocities, conflict-related sexual violence, and targeted attacks on medical workers committed between 2020 and 2022—have effectively normalized violence against healthcare systems. Medical facilities across Tigray, Amhara, and Afar have repeatedly been looted, occupied, or struck by aerial bombardments, leaving hospitals critically short of essential drugs, equipment, and operational funding. This collapse has been further exacerbated by steep cuts in global health aid.
PHR is urging all parties to the conflict—the national government and opposition armed groups alike—to immediately exercise restraint, halt attacks on medical personnel and infrastructure, and guarantee unhindered humanitarian access. Furthermore, the organization is pressing the international community, the United Nations, and the African Union to step up active deescalation efforts and pursue credible, survivor-centered pathways to justice and accountability before civilian suffering deepens further.
