Second anniversary of conflict in Tigray

That this House, recognising the achievement of a peace deal last week at the African Union peace talks, and congratulating all sides on the ceasefire agreement, deplores the widespread use of rape and use of violence against women and girls by all the belligerent parties, noting that Tigrayan women have been recognised by the UN to have been subjected to particular violence leaving an estimated 26,000 in need of services; regrets the loss of life of 500,000 civilians in Tigray, killed from violence and famine, the displacement of more than 1.6 million by this conflict, and the mass detention of many thousands; calls on the Government to (i) increase humanitarian aide when the 17-month humanitarian blockade on Tigray is lifted, (ii) provide assistance for the reconstruction of infrastructure, including schools and hospitals, destroyed during the war, (iii) support the establishment of an internationally recognised ceasefire monitoring mechanism, and (iv) press for full access to all parties and areas for the UN Human Rights Council’s Commission of International Experts on Ethiopia; notes the Government is hosting an important global conference on the use of sexual violence in conflict; and further calls on the Government to give an urgent priority to ending the use of such violence in Ethiopia.