Redwan Hussien Rameto (L) from the Ethiopian government, and Getachew Reda (R), who represents Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF), shook hands on the deal.

A deal has been reached in the Ethiopian civil war with both sides agreeing to halt their two-year conflict which led to thousands of deaths and warnings of famine.

The African Union (AU) has called it a new “dawn”, the AFP news agency says.

The agreement between the Ethiopian government and Tigrayan forces should allow aid deliveries to resume.

Almost 90% of people in the northern Tigray region need food aid, the World Health Organization says.

About a third of the region’s children are suffering from malnutrition.

Both sides agreed to a disarmament plan as well as unhindered access to humanitarian supplies, said former Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo, who mediated the talks.

He said the deal was just the beginning of the peace process in Ethiopia.

Speaking after the announcement, Tigray representatives said they hoped the two sides would honor the deal, the Reuters news agency reports.

They also said the fact an agreement was made showed both sides were ready to find a peaceful way forward, Reuters says.

The foreign minister of the country where the talks are being held – South Africa – also appealed to both sides to stick to the agreement. Naledi Pandor warned that there are “no winners in war”.

The UN said it supported the path to peace: “This is an opportunity to chart a new course. The young men and women who have been mobilized to fight will now have the chance to return to their homes and their families,” said Hanna Serwaa Tetteh, the body’s special envoy for the Horn of Africa.

Tigray has been cut off from the outside world for most of the past two years – hospitals have been running out of drugs, while banking services have been cut, along with the internet and phone lines.

Both sides have been accused of atrocities, including ethnic cleansing and sexual violence.