Ethiopia: Fighting Resumes in Tigray

Jon Shelton with AFP, Reuters

Rebels in northern Ethiopia have seized regional airports and engaged government troops in Afar and Amhara. Observers fear deadly clashes could expand after rebels announced a new anti-government alliance.

Rebels from the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF) have reportedly taken control of regional airports in Tigray, in northern Ethiopia, and further clashed with government forces in the neighboring Afar and Amhara regions.

Wednesday's clashes are the latest of several in recent months and have sparked fears of renewed intense fighting in the war-ravaged region.

The African Union (AU) estimates that some 600,000 people were killed in fighting between the TPLF and Ethiopian forces during a 2020-2022 civil war and that more than 1 million people remain displaced.

On Wednesday, state-owned Ethiopian Airlines announced that it had canceled service at Mekelle, Tigray's capital, as well as Axum and Shire regional airports "due to the current situation."

Local witnesses reported that TPLF rebels armed with light weapons had taken Mekelle Airport — which is normally controlled by government forces — without a fight.

Renewed fighting comes just days after the TPLF announced that it had entered an "Alliance for Survival" with other groups aimed at removing Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed and his government from power.

Abiy and his Prosperity Party won reelection in June, though the vote was boycotted by Ethiopia's main opposition groups.

The TPLF ruled Ethiopia from 1991 until 2018, when it was replaced by Abiy, whose election sparked the country's civil war.

The Pretoria Peace Agreement brought an end to the conflict, but peace has remained elusive, with government troops resuming drone strikes in 2025 as TPLF rebels began amassing troops at regional borders.

Ethiopia has accused the TPLF of allying with neighboring Eritrea and other armed groups.

An advisor to Prime Minister Abiy called Wednesday's development "heartbreaking," saying rebels had launched offensives against government forces in Afar and Amhara as well as taking control of airports in Tigray.

However, the Tigray army "has been instructed to counter the attack and genocidal invasion launched against us, and has entered into a defensive battle," the Tigray government said in a statement on Facebook.