Ethiopia compares Tigray forces to ‘rat’ as war marks 1 year

By CARA ANNA
Associated Press

NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — Ethiopia’s government is marking a year of war by lashing out in response to international alarm about hate speech. A new statement compares the rival Tigray forces to “a rat that strays far from its hole” and says the country is close to “burying the evil forces.” The statement by the government communication service, posted on social media, comes amid urgent new efforts to calm the escalating war. A U.S. special envoy is in the capital for meetings, and the president of neighboring Kenya and others urge an immediate cease-fire. The war that’s killed thousands of people and displaced millions now threatens to engulf the capital, Addis Ababa.