BY ZEKARIAS WOLDEMARIAM
“It is as if mountains from round the world gathered together. The mountains are suitable for tourism. But from the point of view of military strategy, they are more favorable for the one in possession of them first. Hence it takes fierce battle to capture them” says Major General Bacha Debele, commander of the Ethiopian National Defense Forces (ENDF) that marched through south Tigray Front in the recent rule of law operation there.
In deed as the general said more than the TPLF junta’s fighters, the ENDF was challenged by the difficult and rugged terrain of the region. The major mountains in the state include Ferrah Imba, 3939 metres, Imba Alaje, 3438 metres ,Mugulat, 3263 metres, Imba Tsion, 2917 metres , Imba Aradom, Soloda, 2436 metres , among others have beautiful and historically rich scenery.
During the battle of Adwa, in1896 Ethiopian forces led by Emperor Menelik II who owned poor and backward weapons were wise enough to maintain their strong holds on the mountains and launch their surprising attacks to defeat the Italian forces.
One of the main differences that exist on the mountains of Tigray today from a hundred years ago is that there are many kilometer of road build on and around them. Hence they are more accessible by vehicles.
Still in order to travel to many places in Tigray one has to climb the various mountain chains and witnesses the roads that are dreadfully paved along the mountain chains. Due to the difficult nature of the terrain one can normally expect accident while driving. Hence, travelling along the roads also is time taking.
Hence, leave alone during conflict, traveling along the roads of the place needs due care, and consequently, one can conclude that there is a considerable duration of time to take.
In spite of the difficult topography, the ENDF has accomplished the recent military operation in Tigray with amazing speed and precision. Many people feared and warned that the operation should not take long as it could cause loss of more lives, damage of properties, and wastage of economic resources.
Yet to the surprise of all, the ENDF has successfully passed through the series of ups and downs. Coupled with the long ingrained popular culture of determination and attribute to heroism, how the army was able to penetrate in to the highly fortified region which is full of difficult terrain has remained an amazing issue for many people.
Though the time was short, it would be too naïve to think that the operation passed through an easy route. The ENDF is strong army with adequate training and experience both at home and abroad. In addition to the skills and experiences, the army, just like any modern defense force is well equipped. Hence it is somehow easy for such strong army to easily drive the military vehicles and March forward.
However, according to the army commanders, they chose to cruise the challenging rugged mountains in order to hold the battle far away from settlements and minimize civilian casualties and property damage. Otherwise, it is totally unthinkable for an army to wage such dangerous and uphill battle unless the army cherishes a noble cause to achieve.
As a result the defense forces paid a sacrifice to trek the dreadful and rugged mountains and intercept the junta’s forces. One can imagine the difficulty of doing this as soldiers normally pass through such places while bullets and heavy artillery are fired against them.
This sacrifice has really paid back immediately as the army has found it easier to capture the places on the other flip of the difficult terrain easily.
For many decades Tigray State has passed through series of war and conflict. The latest rule of law operation can be said the shortest and safest one. Now that the main operation is over the hills and mountains of Tigray can continue to entertain alpinists and adventurous tourists rather than fighters and soldiers.
The existence of such large number of magnificent mountainous areas is a blessing in disguise both for Tigray and the entire nation. Just as General Bacha figured it out, the difficult terrain is rather suitable for tourism.
Actually tourism is one of the major economic resources in Tigray. The state is endowed with ancient historical places and captivating natural scenery that can serve as best tourist attraction.
There were some beginnings of tourist facilities on the mountains of Tigray. In the near future the members of defense forces who climbed them as soldiers would return and trek again with tourists.
The Ethiopian herald December 4/2020
