The chairman of the African Union commission, Moussa Faki Mahamat, has called for the "immediate cessation of hostilities" in Ethiopia's Tigray region where the military launched an operation against regional troops.

In a statement, Mr Faki Mahamat also urged the central government and Tigray's state authorities to engage in dialogue to seek a peaceful solution.
He expressed the readiness of the AU to support an effort to resolve the conflict.

The leader of the Tigray region, Debretsion Gebremichael, had on Sunday called on the African Union to intervene to stop the country from "spiralling into civil war".

He also called on the federal government to agree to negotiate.
But Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed said on Tuesday that the military operation will cease "after criminal junta is disarmed, legitimate administration in the region restored and fugitives apprehended and brought to justice".