An unflinching account of the crucial period in modern Ethiopian history--from the seizure of power and the execution of former officials, through the internal power struggles, insurgencies, foreign invasions and a devastating famine that ultimately led to the undoing of the Derg regime. The central preoccupation of this book is on the fundamental issues of war and peace in general, and the long-drawn-out conflict in Eritrea and to some extent Tigrai. This book provides a relatively detailed account of the belated effort to bring about a peaceful resolution of the conflicts in the north, including in particular how and why the 1991 London Peace Conference was aborted before its planned formal opening and provides essential text for a comprehensive understanding of what happened--and why.