It follows the proposal by Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s cabinet last month to end the emergency period.

The emergency decree was passed in November last year for six months as an alliance of rebel forces - including the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) - advanced towards the capital Addis Ababa.

The government has cited an improved security situation and the economic costs of the decree as the reasons for its decision.

While intense fighting between government and the Tigray rebels has reduced, attacks and armed confrontations have continued in the Afar region, Tigray’s eastern neighbour.