Addis Ababa: Talks are still on between the Ethiopian government and rebel leaders in Tigre for a peaceful end to their bloody two-year conflict, a diplomat said on Monday.

The first official dialogue to try to end a war that has killed many thousands in northern Ethiopia and sparked a serious humanitarian crisis began last Tuesday in South Africa led by the African Union.

The Pretoria talks, which South Africa initially said would last until Sunday, are still taking place in secrecy. A message from Ebba Kalondo, spokeswoman for Moussa Faki Mahamat, said that "no date limit was imposed on the talks."

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Without going into further detail, a diplomat with inside knowledge of the talks confirmed they were still going on Monday, adding: "They are very strict about confidentiality."

The talks will probably last until Tuesday, according to a source close to the Tigrayan delegation in South Africa, who made a statement over the weekend.

Intense fighting in the Tigre, backed by the Eritrean army and local forces, has continued unabated since talks began. Government troops are using airstrikes and artillery bombings to drive the rebels out of several cities.

After fighting resumed in late August, breaking a five-month truce that had allowed some aid to the Tigre, diplomatic efforts to try to bring the government and rebels to the negotiating table accelerated.

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The ongoing fighting and its impact on civilians caught in the crossfire have deeply concerned the international community.

It calls for an immediate cessation of hostilities, the use of aid to the Tigre, where many are starving, and the withdrawal of Eritrean forces, whose return to the front lines has raised concerns about new atrocities against civilians. has given birth.

Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed sent troops to Tigre on November 4, 2020, triggering the conflict, after accusing the region's ruling Tigre People's Liberation Front of attacking federal army camps.

Since then, fighting in Africa's second most populous country has reportedly killed 500,000 people and expelled more than two million people from their homes.

According to a report released by UNICEF over the weekend, around 574,000 people have been forced to flee their homes since fighting resumed in Tigre and the surrounding regions of Afar and Amhara.

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"The humanitarian response is being hampered by insecurity in the three regions and restrictions on aid movement," the statement said.