Addis Abeba — In a significant joint statement released on February 22, 2026, a coalition of twenty international organizations expressed grave concerns over the escalating Amhara-Fano conflict. The groups highlighted that the federal government's heavy-handed security approach—including the frequent use of drone strikes and heavy weaponry in civilian-populated areas—has pushed the country to the precipice of a full-scale war. The letter calls upon the international community to establish meaningful accountability mechanisms as the space for de-escalation continues to shrink rapidly. Reports from the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) indicate that arbitrary detentions and extrajudicial killings have become increasingly common as federal forces attempt to suppress the Fano militias. The signatories emphasized that the failure to fully implement previous peace agreements and the exclusion of key actors from political dialogue have contributed to the current fragility, placing millions of civilians at risk of mass atrocities.