By Daphne Psaledakis, Doyinsola Oladipo

       3 Min Read

       WASHINGTON (Reuters) -A senior U.S. State Department official on Tuesday warned that Ethiopia and Eritrea should anticipate further actions from the United States if the announcement of a cessation of hostilities does not result in improvements in the Tigray region.

       The former rulers of Ethiopia’s Tigray said on Monday they were back in control of the regional capital Mekelle after nearly eight months of fighting, and the government which ousted them declared a unilateral ceasefire with immediate effect.

       The developments marked a dramatic turn in a conflict that has killed thousands of people, displaced more than 2 million and pushed hundreds of thousands to the brink of famine.

       Robert Godec, acting assistant secretary of state for the State Department’s Bureau of African Affairs, said Washington welcomed the Ethiopian government’s decision to declare a temporary end to hostilities, but warned that the United States will watch closely to determine whether the ceasefire results in changes on the ground.

       “We will not stand by in the face of horrors in Tigray,” Godec told the House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee.

       He also urged the Eritrean government to comply immediately with the cessation of hostilities and called for a permanent, negotiated ceasefire in the region that all parties are committed to.

       “Every effort must be made to make this ceasefire meaningful, including discussions with all parties to the conflict,” said Representative Karen Bass, who chairs the panel’s Africa subcommittee.

       House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Greg Meeks said that if the disaster in Tigray is not abated, “we could witness one of our closest and most powerful allies in Africa march toward civil war and, eventually, a state collapse.”

       The fighting has been punctuated by reports of gang rapes and mass killings of civilians. At least 12 aid workers have been killed.

       Last week, an Ethiopian military airstrike on a crowded market killed at least 64 people and wounded 180 others. Doctors said women and children were among the dead and wounded and that Ethiopian troops prevented ambulances from reaching the scene for more than a day. The military said all the victims were combatants.

       “The administration is in full agreement that horrifying atrocities are being committed in Tigray,” Godec said. But he said the final decision on whether to call events crimes against humanity or a genocide has not been made and is up to Secretary of State Antony Blinken.

       Representative Michael McCaul, the committee’s top Republican, said that in his assessment acts of genocide had been carried out against residents of Tigray and called for targeted sanctions.

       “Almost 1 million people are starving and, according to the U.N., systematic rape and sexual violence is rampant,” McCaul said.

       Reporting by Daphne Psaledakis, Patricia Zengerle and Doyinsola Oladipo; editing by Jonathan Oatis

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