Addis ababa: The peace established by the Pretoria Peace Agreement is facing one of its most serious tests since the guns fell silent in northern Ethiopia. Increasingly, governments, international human rights organizations, former TPLF leaders, and regional observers are converging on a single and urgent conclusion: sustained global pressure on hardline elements of the defunct Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF) is essential to prevent a return to full-scale war in northern Ethiopia.
According to Ethiopian News Agency, without continued diplomatic, political, and legal pressure, there is growing concern that renewed militarization, forced recruitment, and escalating tensions in the Tigray region could unravel the Pretoria Agreement and plunge the region back into catastrophic conflict. What was once regarded largely as an internal political challenge has now become a matter of widening international concern. The emerging global response signals a recognition that instability in northern Ethiopia carries serious implications for peace across the Horn of Africa.
From the United States' decision to impose targeted visa restrictions on hardline TPLF members and their families to Human Rights Watch's strong condemnation of alleged forced conscription in Tigray, the international message is increasingly unified. Those undermining the peace process must face sustained accountability and pressure. This convergence reflects a shift from passive observation to active prevention. The international community is no longer only documenting the consequences of conflict; it is increasingly identifying the actors and actions that could trigger another war.
Among the clearest warnings comes from Human Rights Watch, which has urged the defunct TPLF members currently exercising control in Tigray to immediately revoke a proclamation issued granting sweeping powers for compulsory military recruitment. The organization warned that the measure bears troubling similarities to Eritrea's system of indefinite national service, raising concerns about coercion at a time when communities remain deeply traumatized by the recent war.
The United States has reinforced this concern through targeted visa restrictions against hardline members of the TPLF and their immediate families. Washington has explicitly linked rising tensions in northern Ethiopia to actions by hardline actors within the TPLF, warning that such behavior threatens to reignite conflict and destabilize the region. By pledging to use all available tools to hold accountable those undermining peace, Washington has reinforced a core principle that peace agreements require enforcement, not just signatures.
Ethiopian political figures and former TPLF officials have echoed similar concerns. Professor Kindeya Gebrehiwot and Aregawi Berhe have both highlighted the risks of destabilization and the coercive recruitment practices that could lead to renewed conflict. Additionally, Getachew Reda has emphasized Washington's attribution of responsibility for rising tensions to the Debretsion Gebremichael-led faction of the TPLF.
Additional concerns have also been raised by Ethiopia's National Security Adviser Redwan Hussien, who argued that hardline TPLF elements have used the Pretoria Agreement as an opportunity to reorganize militarily. Aregawi Berhe raised disturbing allegations regarding the recruitment of children, claiming that many veteran fighters have left the organization, forcing the hardline faction to recruit new combatants.
In conclusion, the positions of Human Rights Watch, the United States government, former TPLF leaders, and Ethiopian security officials reveal a remarkable convergence. They point toward a single conclusion: renewed militarization, the defunct TPLF's coercive recruitment, and efforts to undermine the Pretoria Peace Agreement threaten not only northern Ethiopia but also the security architecture of the entire Horn of Africa. The growing international pressure represents far more than isolated diplomatic measures; it reflects an emerging global determination to preserve the peace secured through Pretoria by increasing political, diplomatic, and legal pressure on those accused of preparing for renewed conflict.