Ethiopia’s Tigray forces announce release of 4,000 army POWs

Associated Press

NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — The Tigray rebel forces fighting Ethiopia’s federal army say they will release 4,000 prisoners of war as part of an amnesty. The Tigray Peoples’ Liberation Front announced the release on Twitter Friday, amid an escalating war of words between Ethiopian and Tigray region officials over provocations and preparations for another round of full-blown war. The post on Twitter said the Tigray forces decided to release 4,208 prisoners of war with an amnesty, out of which 401 are women. A diplomat in Ethiopia’s capital, Addis Ababa, said the decision to release the prisoners followed weeks of talks held between military commanders on both sides but talks at the political level have not yet taken place.